AGARTALA, April 19 - In view of the growing Indo-Bangla border trade, a proposal for setting up two more border haats in Tripura has been made, official sources said here on Wednesday.
�It was proposed to set up two more border haats at Ekinpur (Belonia) and Dhulpur (Sabroom) to boost bilateral trade in the Dy Commissioner/District Magistrate level Indo-Bangla meeting held in Chittagong on April 13�, said District Magistrate (DM), South district, CK Jamatia.
�A joint visit will be conducted very shortly to identify the spots for the border haats and then the reports will be sent to the higher authorities of both sides for approval�, he said over telephone from Belonia. Presently, two border haats � Srinagar and Kamalasagar � functioning in the State�s Indo-Bangla border are doing well in terms of trade volume.
There was, however, no headway on the tricky bilateral issue of Muhurichar in Belonia subdivision, he said and expressed the view that status-quo should be maintained. Jamatia was part of the Indian delegation at the meeting.
Watersharing of Feni and Muhuri rivers was also raised in the meeting. On Bangladesh side, it was stated that India is using more water of Feni and Muhuri leading to trouble for farmers during lean season in Bangladesh. �But we tried to make them understand that India could not sonstruct irrigation projects in the river Feni due to persistent opposition by the BGB side.
Farmers of Sabroom are suffering due to less water in river Feni�, he said. Later, it was decided that both sides will conduct survey to determine the use of water of both rivers. And, if situation arises a joint survey could be done as per the guidelines of Joint River Commission.
In the meeting, it appeared that several sub pillars along the Indo-Bangla border (Chittagong sector) were either missing or in dilapidated condition. �A joint survey will be done to undertake maintenance of old pillars and installation of new pillars for proper demarcation of Indo-Bangla border�, the official said.
On trans-border crimes, the DM said there was an elaborate discussion on the issue. �We have agreed to intensify operations on both sides of border to prevent smuggling of goods and other non-smuggling incidents. Besides, if situation requires, we will share intelligence to stop crime along the border�, he added.
