Shillong,
Sep 16 : Meghalaya has lost 41 acres of land as India and
Bangladesh have demarcated their boundaries but the overall agreement
will only bring 'goodwill and prosperity' to both countries, said state
Chief Minister Mukul Sangma Friday.
Sangma was part of Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh's entourage to Bangladesh Sep 6-7. The two countries
signed a framework agreement on cooperation for development and a
protocol on demarcating their land boundary.
'We would be gaining around 240
acres of land under adverse possession of Bangladesh, but would be
losing around 41 acres of our land to Bangladesh,' Sangma told IANS.
The new India and Bangladesh land accord will safeguard the interests of Meghalaya, said Sangma.
'Instead of irritant and disputed
border, we now expect to have a border which will enable us to have
goodwill and prosperity and border of conflict should be converted into
border of mutual trust,' the chief minister said.
About 55 such enclaves in all were under adverse possession by India
despite Bangladesh claiming them. Likewise, 111 territories were under
adverse possession by Bangladesh, although India claimed it was their
territory.
The land agreement between the two
countries, however, decided that the dispute be resolved - those
disputed enclaves under possession by India would be handed over to
Bangladesh and vice versa.
These adverse possession areas were
created when the erstwhile East Pakistan and India demarcated the
international boundary in the mid-1960s.
There are 11 such areas in Meghalaya.While Bangladesh cites documents of 1937, the Indian side relies on land records of 1914 to support its claims. The exact area of the entire enclaves cannot be immediately estimated.
The border issue has been an
'irritant', Sangma said adding, the northeastern states despite being
surrounded by international borders have 'no meaningful trade and
commerce'.
'Therefore, it has become very
important to ensure that there is a conducive atmosphere created along
the border and relations are built up for furthering our engagement of
trade and commerce,' Sangma told IANS.
Sangma who held several meetings with various top Bangladeshi leaders
including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, wanted tourism between India
and its neighbours to improve.
'Look at Singapore, Malaysia and
Thailand which lure lakhs of international tourists each year earning
billions from this upcoming industry. India, Bangladesh and Bhutan
together could become one of the world's biggest tourist circuit if
these countries coordinated properly,' he said.
'The northeastern part of India is a 'virgin area' with a lot of
resources. We can explore the opportunities together for future
generation,' the chief minister added.
However, the border villagers from
Pyrdiwah and Lyngkhat areas which are adversely held in Meghalaya's East
Khasi Hills have expressed unhappiness with the swapping of land.
According to a recent joint border survey, out of the current 220 acres, Pyrdiwah will be allowed to hold only 193 acres.
'We are waiting for the minutes of
the actual agreement to know whether India really agreed to the proposal
of the joint border survey,' said Peter Rynjah, secretary of the
Federation of Ri War Mihngi Local Dorbars, a body representative of 132
villages in the border areas.
Of the 4,098 km long border shared
between India and Bangladesh, Meghalaya shares a 443 km border with
Bangladesh, part of which is porous, hilly, unfenced and is prone to
frequent infiltration.