India is set to return nearly 200 acres of land lost by Bangladesh due to the erosion of the Padma River along the Daulatpur border in Kushtia. This decision was reached during a courtesy meeting between senior officials of the border security forces of both countries yesterday.
On Monday (September 16), Lieutenant Colonel Mahbub Murshed Rahman, the commander of the 47th Battalion of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), confirmed the matter.
According to BGB and local sources, the disputed lands are located in the Chollishpara area of Ramkrishnapur Union in Daulatpur upazila, adjacent to the Padma River on the Indian border. Due to erosion caused by the river and natural calamities, international border pillars between 157/MP and 85/10-S over a span of three kilometers became disordered.
Lieutenant Colonel Mahbub Murshed Rahman said that a new survey would be conducted to return the disputed land to its rightful owners. BGB sources revealed that in a joint survey on February 10, an approximate 200 acres of Bangladesh’s land inside India and about 40 acres of India’s land inside Bangladesh were found to be misaligned. The meeting between the border forces of both nations took place on Sunday at a point 150 yards inside India from the Jamalpur Border Outpost in Mahishkundi, Daulatpur upazila, focusing on these disputed lands.
The meeting was led by Lieutenant Colonel Mahbub Murshed Rahman on behalf of BGB and Commandant Vikram Dev Singh of the Roushanbagh Battalion on behalf of the Border Security Force (BSF).
Mahbub Murshed Rahman said that in the February survey, it was found that Bangladesh was owed about 200 acres, and India about 40 acres. Both battalion commanders agreed to conduct a new survey in October in the presence of surveyors from both countries, along with BGB and BSF officials, to return the land to its rightful owners.
He also mentioned that the disputed area is primarily a river zone, and erosion and natural disasters in the Padma River made it difficult to define the proper boundary between the two countries. However, through joint efforts, a solution now seems likely. No one will be able to use the land until ownership is fully settled. A strong protest was made regarding the killing of Bangladeshi citizens by BSF.
Additionally, discussions were held on preventing the detention of innocent civilians at the border, curbing the smuggling of drugs and banned items from India to Bangladesh, and preventing cross-border movement during the upcoming Durga Puja festival.
