Border survey about to hit snags again

The officials yesterday could not resume field work of the joint survey of Sylhet-Meghalaya border 'due to some disagreements' with the Indians yesterday. However, they would discuss the Padua-Protappur border after a week, survey officials said.
The survey team and BGB officials discussed a few documents on Padua-Protappur border with the Indian land officials yesterday.
On return from the Padua-Protappur border in the afternoon, the Additional Deputy Commissioner (Revenue), Sylhet-Shamim Al Razi told this correspondent that they had some preliminary discussion on Tuesday for resuming the survey after 4 months.
"Accordingly, we wanted to start the field job yesterday. But it could not be done as both sides could not agree on the border line. The Indians were claiming lands inside Bangladesh territory and we also pressed for Bangladesh lands in possession of the Indians for long".
"We will inform the Directorate of Survey of the matter for necessary instruction and hopefully talk to the Indians after a week", he added.
Asked about the Indian claims, the official said, "We placed our documents and pressed on the boundary pillars and then asked for documents in support of their claims".
In the wake of repeated incidents of intrusion for paddy crops and fishing as well as killing of Bangladesh nationals by the BSF and by the Indian Khasia tribesmen, the authorities decided for joint survey on the Jaintapur, Gowainghat and Kanaighat borders. Accordingly, it began on 7 December last year.
But it came to a halt after the 14 December incident, when about 500 armed Indians, backed by the BSF intruded into the Bangladesh territory and occupied some lands on Padua border.
However, they retreated in the face of chase by thousands of villagers.
As the survey work resumed on Tuesday morning on Dibir haor near pillar 1284 and near 1270 on Padua borders, the Indians claimed 55.3 acres on Dibir haor and 320 acres on Padua borders which had been in possession of Bangaldesh. But, they failed to produce any documentary evidence in support of their claims.
Border sources informed the Indian Khasia tribesmen had been opposing the survey on Dibir haor border in Jaintapur upazila claiming ownership of 55 acres of Bangladesh lands. They also pressed for suspending the survey on the Sonarhat-Lynkhat border, where about 80 acres of Bangladesh lands in addition to the 100 acres on Protappur-Padua border are in Indians' possession.