IMO the data gap was deliberate. I don't know how the Chinese could have failed to foresee Bangladesh's reveal, and it does tie in with another development in Chinese statecraft. A version of the old Dulles and Dulles ploy of the Fifties. 'See how well we take care of our friends? Remember that, the next time we're in conflict with your neighbor.'
Bangladesh gets the message, and so does India. I've noticed it happening in the strangest places, far from China, and then I remembered the Dulleses. US was/is even more isolated from the majority landmasses, but we still had "allies" in Arabia e.g. which doesn't have water. But, it's gold is black, I'm told. 
That monsoon season is absolutely necessary for even such survival as those countries eke out. It's also a Guaranteed Annual Disaster for those same farmers, none of whose gods seem able to help. Add: Same people in Bangladesh strip the mountains of trees to cook their food [barely eked out, did I mention?], so half the hill comes down on them also.
There's a think tank called the Jamestown Foundation, [ http://www.jamestown.org/ , which I think will pass your link checking] that has many long reads on that part of the world. It reads as hard news but is presented honestly as commentary. I haven't detected any biases in particular. Got more on the South China Sea than even Reuters. I enjoy reading it even though the smallest problems it covers are beyond my abilities to help. And Trump's too.
That's where I get my knowledge of the area, which has matched other sources so far.
Thanks again for the link. Didja notice the man in the picture is NOT a diplomat, soldier or dictator? Just one of us.