Bangladesh, April 28 -- In recent years, lightning has emerged as a natural hazard in Bangladesh, with over 300 annual fatalities, primarily affecting farmers in the rural areas.
Lightning was formally declared a natural disaster in 2016 and incorporated into the National Plan for Disaster Management (NPDM) 2021-2025, but the annual death tolls have continued to exceed year after year.
According to a report published in this newspaper yesterday, at least 14 people were killed in lightning strikes across seven districts of the country on Sunday.
Among them, five were killed in Gaibandha; two each in Thakurgaon, Sirajganj and Jamalpur; and one each in Panchagarh, Bogura, and Natore.
As of 18 April this year, 60 deaths were already reporte...