Forty million people in rural Bangladesh are now at risk of arsenic poisoning. The number of patients seriously affected by arsenic in drinking water has now risen to 1420. In early 1996, arsenic poisoning of ground water was reported first from Bagerhat, Satkhira and Kushtia, all three south-western Bangladesh districts bordering India. By now the scourge has hit 19 rural districts along the border. Even bad news are pouring on to the table of Health Ministry that adjacent rural areas surrounding the capital city of Dhaka is arsenic-tainted.
Poor villagers are at the receiving end.
Ill-equipped to deal with the scale of it, the nation is still uncertain as to how to cope with this mass poisoning disaster. True, the government is issuing warnings by radio and television. A task force is being constituted to run district-wise programs. Despite the efforts of the government and formation of these committees, mitigation measures are yet to be intensified. Much of the rural Bangladesh has caught up in a panic.