Low-income people, particularly day labourers, transport and construction workers, rickshaw pullers and farmers, are suffering terribly due to the ongoing scorching heatwave. Bangladesh is currently experiencing maximum temperatures between 42 and 40 degrees Celsius, which is causing severe discomfort for the people.
As the day progresses, the temperature keeps rising, making it unbearable for them (day labourers) to move around amid the extreme heat. A day labourer usually works for Tk500 to Tk 1000 per day and finds it difficult to continue work in the extreme hot weather.
Many day labourers are being forced to stay at cool places instead of going to work to get respite from the intense heat. Rickshaw-pullers find it very hard to pedal their three-wheeler in the extreme summer heat.
Despite this, many day labourers still have to work under the burning sun to earn a bread for their family. Their throats are becoming dry, and the extreme heat makes them feel boiling.
As heat and humidity levels rise throughout the day because of climate change, options for moving outdoor labour to cooler hours dramatically shrank, leading to significant labour losses across the country. The torrid heat has made the day unbearable for low-income people who toil in the sun, cutting into their meagre daily earnings.
Torrid heat has made the day
unbearable for
low-income people
The traffic was thin on the city streets, but traffic police still had to be on duty amid the scorching heat. On the other hand, farmers leave paddy fields before noon to escape from the searing heat. They are earning less wage for the day, while boro harvesting, which has just begun in some regions of the country, is being hampered.
As temperatures soar to record highs, the heatwave is taking a heavy toll on day labourers, transport and construction workers, rickshaw-pullers and farmers’ health and their productivity. Day labourers are one of the major contributors to the country’s informal economy.
The government and non-government organisations and affluent people of the society will have to stand with humanitarian support by the low-income people, the destitute and vulnerable groups hit hard by the severe heatwave to ease their hardship in this difficult time.
To this end, they should provide financial help to the severely-affected people. As the current hot spell sweeping the country, distribution of humanitarian assistance should begin immediately.
