M Sadrul Ahmed Khan
Climate change has caused heavy downpours that have triggered massive flooding around the world. From Europe to China and in neighboring India, many countries have been ravaged by deadly floods. Interestingly, many parts of the world have never seen such troubled weather.
This flood should be a wake-up call for world politicians to take immediate and long term measures to reduce global warming. A warm atmosphere is responsible for heavy rainfall and floods, while in contrast in the opposite side of the globe there might be an intense heatwave, drought and wildfire at the same time linked to a rise in temperature.
Countries in central Europe have been hit by severe flooding this week. Extreme rainfall has caused rivers across the region to break their banks, with the Danube and Elbe particularly affected. People living in affected regions in Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary and Slovakia have been evacuated from their homes. Over 200 people are known to have died.
Hundreds are missing in action and a thousand families are affected.In China at least 13 people were killed in floods after heavy rains in Zhengzhou capital of Henan province. The rainwas recorded as the heaviest ever recorded in the country's history with an estimated one million people affected by the flood.
The widespread flood in Europe and China are linked to climate change. Without a change of climate, we might not have seen much precipitation. The air is hotter nowadays and is unable to carry more moisture. It resulted in unusual rainfall and storms compared to all previous records.
The early warning system looks unreliable as nature is playing hit and run technic. Therefore, world leaders and politicians need to pay attention and now is the best time. Now at all the global conferences climate change issue should be on top of the agenda and leaders should make a plan and implement actions to reduce global warming as well as reduce carbon emission.
The Environment Ministers must not put Climate change as a side issue, but be actively pursue, along with resilience measures.If we don't look after nature, nature will not look after us. We don't have Planet B, we have only one earth, let's work together to make it healthy for living. We must bear in mind, "Climate is everyone's business, every day's business".
Global warming and climate change have made Bangladesh and the countries of the Indian sub-continent the most vulnerable. We are the biggest sufferers of the consequence of climate change though we are not contributing to this change.It may be mentioned that Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had realized the adverse impacts of climate change long ago and called for greater international cooperation to face the natural calamity in his very first speech at the United Nations General Assembly in 1974.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is the current president of the climate-vulnerable forum and she always urges world leaders to take immediate steps to tackle climate change and set a model for sustainable development. Every year despite facing natural calamities like earthquakes, cloud bursts, avalanches, landslides, flash floods, tidal surges, earthquakes, heavy rains, droughts Bangladesh is marching ahead under the able leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Bangladesh took one-step lead after launching the Bangabandhu-1 satellite, which enhanced the country's capacity in weather forecasting, and monitoring.
Squadron Leader (Rtd) M Sadrul Ahmed Khan is a Former Deputy Serjeant-At-Arms and Member, Bangladesh Awami League, Finance and Planning Affairs Sub-Committee.
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