Agartala, Jan 17, 2025, TRIPURA TIMES Desk
Kailashahar, Jan 17: Construction of an embankment close to India-Bangladesh border on the Bangladesh side has raised serious concerns among the people of Kailashahar.
Two days after the issue was raised by Congress MLA Birajit Sinha in the Tripura Legislative Assembly drawing the attention of Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha, a team of Unakoti district administration led by District Magistrate D.K. Chakma on Friday inspected Devipur village in Rangauti Gram Panchayat area in Kailashahar.
The team inspected the construction near Pillar No. 1849 from the zero point of the India- Bangladesh international boundary.
After the inspection, the District Magistrate informed the media that the embankment is being constructed unlawfully and without prior consultation with Indian authorities. He revealed that the embankment spans nearly 10 kilometers, with three kilometers already completed. Some parts of the embankment included paved roads and high concrete walls, and the work is being carried out primarily at night, raising further concerns.
The District Magistrate noted that while the embankment falls within Bangladesh's Alinagar area under Moulvibazar district, it could severely impact Kailashahar. He emphasized that the condition of India's existing embankment, located at a distance of 350 meters from the zero point, is weak and it requires immediate attention to counteract potential risks posed by Bangladesh's embankment.
He urged higher authorities to reconstruct India's embankment to make it taller and more robust than Bangladesh's structure. He stressed the need for strict adherence to international guidelines to ensure that such constructions do not lead to cross-border disputes or environmental hazards.
Meanwhile, the Congress in the last Assembly session warned that this unethical construction poses a significant threat of submerging the entire Kailashahar during the upcoming monsoon season.
According to some local villagers, the Bangladesh government has been deliberately planning to flood Kailashahar through the construction of the embankment dangerously close to the Indo-Bangladesh border. They said, as the monsoon season approaches, timely action would be crucial to safeguarding Kailashahar from possible flooding.
Additional DM, Unakoti- Argha Saha, vice-chairman of Gournagar Panchayat Samiti Md. Badruzzaman, and Sub-Divisional Magistrate (in-charge) Matiranjan Debbarma were part of the team during the inspection on Friday.