The number of deaths by lightning in the country has increased significantly in the past few years. Death by lightning, once a rare phenomenon in Bangladesh, has become increasingly common these
days. Lightning has become one of the major causes of death for people involved in agricultural activities. The government categorised lightning as a disaster in August last year.
The department concerned has taken various initiatives to identify the causes for the increasing number of deaths due to lightning strike in the country.
Experts have recommended construction of lightning shelters in open spaces, especially in farm areas, where farmers can easily take shelter during rough weather.
The possible contribution of mobile towers to the rising number of deaths by lightning strike in recent times is also being investigated, they said.
Around 24,000 people die and 2.40 lakh get injured due to lightning strike across the world annually.
Lightning strikes 100 times per second and 80 lakh times a day across the world.  At least 90 people in Bangladesh died due to lightning in May and June this year.  
Natural disasters cannot be prevented, but losses can be minimised, Prof. Jamilur Reza Chowdhury, vice chancellor of the University of Asia Pacific, told The Independent.
“Around 90 per cent of the people do not abide by the building code while constructing their apartments,” he said.
Deforestation is one of the major causes of lightning, said Chowdhury, adding, “The country’s forest cover is now below 10 per cent. It must be increased to 25 per cent.”
He also suggested the inclusion of a chapter on lightning in textbooks.  
According to Md Mohsin, joint secretary of the disaster management and relief ministry, 9.9 persons (per crore) die in Bangladesh due to lightning every year, one person (per crore) dies in India,
24 (per crore) in Nepal, and 27 (per crore) in Sri Lanka.
Around 319 people have died due to lightning in the US in the past 10 years, while only 24 have died for the same reason in Japan during the same period.
“We’ve asked the Met department for carrying out a programme on lightning detection systems throughout Bangladesh, considering that lightning has been categorised as a disaster,” Mohsin said.
Cumulus clouds normally cause lightning, M Arshad Momen, chairman of the theoretical physics department of Dhaka University, told The Independent. “Cumulonimbus and mugshot clouds are the causes of lightning,” he said.
The frequency of lightning strikes has increased due to global warming, Prof. ASM Maksud Kamal, chairman of disaster science and management of DU, told this correspondent.
“Moisture in the wind gets reduced due to global warming.
Therefore, the quantity of dust in the sky increases.
Thus, lightning forms easily from the generation of electricity in the clouds,” he said in reply to a query.