Mahottari, Dec 21: Daily life of people in Mahottari district has been adversely affected for some days here since the cold intensified sharply. The dense fog and mist that set from the morning continue till midday these days subsequently leading to cold wind.
“A dense fog forms since morning to till midday since last Wednesday. Due to the cold wind, we have not been able to go to our duty either,” shared Ashraful Ryan, 30, of Matihani-8.
“It has made life more difficult,” he lamented.
While the southern part of the district saw a sharp increase in cold since last Wednesday due to foggy conditions, the northern parts including places like Bardibas, Aurahi, Bhangaha and other places have witnessed similar weather condition since last Friday.
These places had experienced bright sunshine till last Thursday, said Laxmi Prasad Kushbaha of Gaushala-10.
The septuagenarian man recalled, “The weather was so good till Thursday but suddenly a thick fog set in on Friday. Since then the cold has risen sharply.”
The elderly worried, “This increasing cold has given us a fear that we won’t be able to survive much longer.”
He explained that although fog sets in with morning and gradually gets cleared after daytime, the cold wind blows throughout the day due to lack of sunlight.
The impoverished settlements have been severely affected by the increasing cold. Marginalized and backward communities such as Mushahar, Dom, Halkhor and Mestar among others fend off cold by collecting discarded clothes, papers and plastics and burn ‘Ghur’ (bonfire) to heat up themselves.
“There is no firewood to burn bonfire. None (concerned authority) comes to see us. What shall we do,” bemoaned Hemani Sada Mushahar of Bhangaha-4, adding that they have to rely on ‘Ghur’ to warm them up during the winter.
Furthermore, there are difficulties in operating vehicles on the road and run air services due to inclement weather due to dense fog.
Most of the morning flights have been affected due to poor visibility, according to the Janakpur Airport.
Drivers operating public vehicles also admit that driving in dense fog poses huge risks of road accident which is why they are forced to stop the vehicles at places.
Cold wind that blows due to persistent thick fog from morning to midday has made the mornings and evenings here much colder, affecting the daily lives.
