Rainfalls to continue for few more days

The current spell of rainfalls is likely to continue for the next few days across the country, the Met office said on Tuesday.

"A torrential rain may grip the country for the next 24 hours. Then, it will rain intermittently for the next two days," said Md Akhtar Uddin, meteorologist of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).

"In the 12 hours from 6am to 6pm on Tuesday, 42.6-millimeter rainfalls were recorded in Dhaka," said another Meteorologist of BMD Md Aftab Uddin.

Earlier, the Met office recorded 87mm rainfalls from Monday 6am to Tuesday 6am in Dhaka.

Meanwhile, incessant rainfalls have caused immense sufferings to the residents of the capital.

On Tuesday, people in Dhanmondi neighbourhoods were seen suffering from serious waterlogging. Water entered small shops and hotels in low-lying places in the morning.

Green Road, Mirpur and Mirpur Road, Dhanmondi-27, Moghbazar, Airport Road, a large part of Motijheel's Arambagh, old Dhaka's Bangshal and Nazirabazar were submerged due to the continuous downpour, causing traffic jams on many roads.

In the meantime, Local Government and Rural Development Minister (LGRD) Md Tajul Islam has called an emergency meeting on Wednesday to formulate a long-term plan to reduce waterlogging in the capital.

The meeting will be attended by the Ministry of Water Resources, Dhaka North and South city corporations, Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Wasa), Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk), Metro Rail Authority, BRTA, Water Development Board and other authorities concerned.

The LGRD minister said water levels in rivers have increased due to high pressure from upstream. So, it is not possible to flush the water out of the city through sluice gates in a natural way.

"If these gates are opened, the river water will rather enter the city and intensify waterlogging. So, we have to pump out the water following the artificial method," he added.

According to the minister, 17 water pumps of Dhaka Wasa and many others of Water Development Board have been pumping out water from the city to lessen the sufferings of general people.

"With each pump, it is possible to extract 5,000 litres of water per second which is much less than the water already accumulated due to excessive rainfalls. That is why temporary waterlogging has been created in different parts of the city," the minister said.

Due to active monsoon in the country, all maritime ports have been advised to hoist local cautionary signal number 3 as squally weather may affect them, North Bay and adjoining coastal areas of the country.

All fishing boats and trawlers in the bay have been advised to come close to the coast and proceed with caution till further notice.