File photo.

By Shafiqul Islam Bebu

KURIGRAM, Dec 23, 2025 (BSS) - The intensity of cold is gradually increasing across Kurigram district as icy northern winds and dense fog continue to disrupt normal life, pushing people -- especially those living in char areas-- into severe hardship, despite the absence of a formal cold wave.

Locals said heavy dew has been falling throughout the night like rainfall, while dense fog blankets char and rural areas from early morning, significantly reducing visibility and intensifying the feeling of cold.

Rajarhat Agricultural Meteorological Observatory said the district recorded a minimum temperature of 12 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, with air humidity at 98 percent. 

Due to thick fog and cold winds, the intensity of cold has multiplied in the char areas of the district, it observed.

Kurigram, crisscrossed by 16 rivers, has 469 chars spread over an area of around 850 square kilometres. 

Of these, 269 chars are inhabited, where the livelihoods of about 5.5 lakh people depend on riverine life. 

In these cold-prone char areas, icy winds have forced many residents to remain confined indoors. The severity of cold is being felt more acutely in the char regions of Kurigram Sadar, Ulipur and Nageshwari upazilas in the Brahmaputra basin, and Rajarhat upazila in the Teesta basin.

Hossain Ali, Member of Ward No-7 of Jatrapur Union under Kurigram Sadar, said around three thousand people live in Kali's Alga Char. He said at least five hundred people, including elderly and children, are suffering severely due to a lack of warm clothes. 

Noting that cold-stricken people are gathering at his house every day, he said he can only assure them that lists have been prepared and blankets will be provided, but so far no warm clothes have been received from either government or private sources.

The cold has hit the elderly, children and day labourers the hardest. Due to the biting cold, many day labourers are unable to go to work, resulting in loss of income and extreme hardship for their families.

Subal Chandra Sarkar, Officer-in-Charge of the Rajarhat Agricultural Meteorological Observatory, said temperatures may fall further in the coming days, raising the possibility of increased cold intensity.

President of the Kurigram District Char Development Committee Professor Shafiqul Islam Bebu said the district has a population of around 23.29 lakh, of which 70.8 percent are poor, amounting to approximately 16.49 lakh people. 

He said most of the poor live in char areas, and due to weak communication systems in remote chars, residents are often overlooked. 

He urged the district administration to ensure winter cloth reaches the truly cold-stricken people.

Kurigram District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer Abdul Matin said Tk 54 lakh has been allocated for distributing winter clothing across the district's nine upazilas, and distribution of blankets and other winter essentials will begin very soon.

Local people fear that if the cold intensifies further, the suffering of char dwellers will worsen, prompting widespread calls for rapid, transparent and fair distribution of winter clothing across the district.