AIZAWL, April 10 - At least six companies working on Indo-Bangladesh border fencing have abandoned their works before completion. Sources said that of the six contractors who left their work unfinished, two were asked to leave on ground of �bad works�, while the other four withdrew on their own.
Officials of the Engineering Projects India Limited (EPIL) and National Projects Construction Corporation Limited (NPCC), the two agencies engaged in supervision of the border fencing works along the Indo-Bangladesh border said they faced problems when contractors left their works.
Though the works left by contractors were instantly allotted to other companies, it has delayed work inhibiting speedy completion of the border fencing, they added.
Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-km long international border, the fifth-longest land border in the world, including 262 km in Assam, 856 km in Tripura, 180 km in Mizoram, 443 km in Meghalaya, and 2,217 km in West Bengal. The Bangladeshi divisions of Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Sylhet and Chittagong are situated along the border.
The Indo-Bangladesh border fencing project was launched in 2005 and was initially planned to be completed within three years. The border fencing completion schedule has been extended several times due to various reasons. As per the latest notification issued by Ministry of Home Affairs, the Indo-Bangla border fencing is scheduled to be completed by 2019.
According to officials of NPCC, 37 km out of 150-km-long border fencing under its supervision has been handed over to Border Security Force, while 65 km out of 83 km border fencing under EPIL has been completed.
