The cold of the Bengali month of Agrahayan has gripped Tentulia where lowest temperature of the country has been recorded this year.

The sunlight has not been visible over the last couple of days. The entire Tentulia remains covered with fog during the day. Cold wind start blowing from the afternoon and it continues to increase at night.

The lowest 13.5 degree Celsius temperature has been recorded on Sunday (December 10) morning in Tentulia.

Visiting several places in the upazila on Sunday morning, this correspondent found that entire Tentulia was covered by dense fog. Motor vehicles were moving on city- and village-bound roads switching their lights on. None wanted to come out of their respective houses without necessity. Only the people belonging to low-income group came out their homes for livelihood.

According to the local Met Office, fog appears during the day due to the influence of Cyclone Migzaum. The sunlight does not appear owing to the cloud and fog. Day's temperature has also gone down. Cold is felt owing the blowing of cool air from the afternoon. The cold also increases with the fall of night. Dense fog appear in the morning which makes the visibility on roads difficult.

With the advent of winter, low-income group of people throng shops on footpaths and different markets in the upazila to buy clothes. The shops selling warm clothes have started to rising on the footpaths. These shops sell sweters, jackets, muffler, trousers and caps. Cold and winter-related diseases like pneumonia, persistent cough, breathing difficulties etc. The diseases that affect children here in Tentulia in winter are common cold or influenza, bronchitis, pneumonia, tonsillitis and sore throat, asthma, earache, whooping cough, stomach flu or viral diarrhoea, scabies etc. They also suffer from high fever, cough and respiratory distress.

Tentulia Weather Monitoring Station's in-charge Md Russel Shah said, "Temperature has started falling. 13.5 degree Celsius temperature was recorded in the upazila on Sunday morning which was lowest in the country. Temperature will also decline in the days ahead. Since this region lies close to the Himalayas and Kanchenjunga mountains, severe cold is felt here in winter."