61 Indian truckers stranded in Burimari on their way home

After being stranded in Lalmonirhat's Burimari land port for 38 days, sixty-one Indian truck drivers were sent back home this afternoon.

They had brought jute seeds to the port in Patgram upazila from India and got stuck on April 4 after Indian authorities refused to grant them re-entry, our local correspondent reports.

After unloading the goods in the upazila, they were returning to India the same day but the authorities of India's Changrabandha land port did not take them back due to lockdown in that country.

Some local businessmen helped the drivers with food and clothing.

Izahar Ali, one of the truckers, told our correspondent that he talked to his family members and told them that he was returning home.

If he and other truckers were not helped by the locals, they "would have died", he added.

Another Indian truck driver Ramesh Das echoed the same.

Mahfuzul Islam Bhuiyan, deputy director (Burimari land port) of Bangladesh Land Ports Authority, said the truck drivers started for their country around 4:00pm.

"This has been made possible after multiple contacts between the authorities concerned of the two countries," the official added.

Quoting officials of Changrabandha land port, Mahfuzul said they allowed the truckers to enter India following their departure from Burimari land port.