December 21, 2003	Sunday	Shawwal 26, 1424

DHAKA, Dec 20: South Asian meteorologists gathered on Saturday in Dhaka for four days of brainstorming on how to minimize the damage from natural disasters in the calamity-prone region.

“The loss and damage of lives, agricultural crops and livestock due to these meteorological events cannot be avoided but can be reduced by using appropriate forecasts or warnings with sufficient lead time,” Reaz Rahman, Bangladesh’s state minister for foreign affairs, told the seminar.

Mahbubur Rahman, director of the Dhaka-based SAARC Meteorological Research Center which organized the meet, called for better forecasting as South Asia’s geography placed it in the frequent path of disasters.

Thousands die across South Asia each year from the hot summers and cold winters, along with cyclones, floods, landslides and occasional earthquakes.

—AFP