At least 100,000 people have been affected by floods ravaging the country’s northern and north-eastern districts. Heavy rain, coupled with onrush of water from the upstream, has caused major rivers like the Brahmaputra-Jamuna, the Teesta and the Surma-Kushiyara to overflow their banks.
People are trapped in their homes, helplessly watching their Aman seed-beds and other crops go under water. There is scarcity of safe drinking water, cooked and dry food.
Reports from the regions said that livestock too are unable to graze or drink water. To add to the misery, water-borne diseases are spreading.
The situation is serious in the char lands and low-lying areas of the Brahmaputra and the Teesta basins, along with vast wetlands called Haors in the Surma basin in parts of Sylhet and Sunamganj.
Although the Brahmaputra is flowing above the danger level affecting thousands in Kurigram and its char lands, the river did not rise further at its entry point at Noonkhawa and down at Chilmari yesterday. But further downstream at Sirajganj, where the river is known as the Jamuna, it submerged homes and left thousands in the lurch.
The water may start receding from today if the river does not rise in the upstream, said officials of the Flood  Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) of the Water Development Board (WDB). People living along the Brahmaputra-Jamuna may face erosion when the swollen river retreats, tearing away everything on its way.
In the northern districts of Kurigram and Lalmonirhat, at least 80,000 people have remained trapped in flood waters for three days after the Brahmaputra and the Teesta went into spate and burst their banks. Many have taken shelter on roads and high lands with their cattle. They said they received relief from the administration, but it was too inadequate to serve their needs.
Relief officials said they have started working to help the affected people. Very soon the affected areas would receive help, AKM Idris Ali, relief official of Lalmonirhat, told The Independent TV yesterday.
The situation remained unchanged in Sunamganj where flood barriers along the Surma and the wetlands were eroded, flooding more villages and roads in the area, making it difficult for the flood-affected to take shelter or move.
In Dhaka, Ripon Karmaker, an official of the FFWC, said the Surma-Kushiyara may rise further in the next 24 hours, while the Brahmaputra would remain unchanged. But the pressure of its water down below would rise slightly at Sirajganj in the next 48 hours. The Ganges-Padma is likely to maintain its rising trend during the next 72 hours.But all depends on how it rains upstream, Karmaker said.
Weather reports from the Indian Meteorological Department says that rain will be concentrated in Indian states of Assam and Meghalaya in the next  five days. This would have some impact on the Surma and the Kushiyara, and other smaller rivers around.