Residents protest govt negligence

The residents of the now defunct Bangladeshi enclaves inside India yesterday resorted to a novel way to protest their lack of fundamental rights.

Some 14,000 people of the former enclaves set scarecrows across their lands to participate in the protest.

The residents of the former enclaves said, though on paper their civic rights have been ensured they are still deprived of fundamental rights.

Although an entire year has passed since the enclaves were exchanged between India and Bangladesh, the Indian government has not yet taken any initiatives for any development in the area. The residents here have finally been able to claim statehood after remaining stateless for 68 full years but now, they are yet to enjoy any of their fundamental rights.

The residents say the top political leaders of the two countries exchanged the enclaves in a hurry to reap political gains. The residents of the former enclaves were used as pawns in this political game and now that the purpose of the politicians has been served the people and their needs have lost importance.

Saddam Hossain of Moshaldanga under Dinhata sub-division of Cooch Behar district said, their life is comparable to the lives of scarecrows which are used to scare crows away from the croplands. So to drive home that point they set scarecrows on their lands as a symbol of their deprivation.

The residents said, over the last one year there has been no development in the area relating to education, health, electricity connection, water supply, roads and bazars.

Diptiman Sengupta, chief of the Nagorik Suraksha Samannay Committee said the politicians are 'using' the people living in the enclaves for their personal gains.

He said, Indian government has now got possession over 60,000 acres of former enclave lands. But the real owner of the land is the formerly-Bangladeshi residents of the enclaves. They were promised compensation against the lands which did not materialize within the last year. Not even a survey of this land has taken place as yet, he pointed out.

The Development Minister of the West Bengal state government and Cooch Behar district Trinamool President  Rabindranath Ghosh said the union government and the state government are working for the development of the enclaves. It would take some time for that to happen especially as the monsoon season is ongoing right now.

Meanwhile the district magistrate of Cooch Behar P Ulaganathan said a Rs 200 crore project has been submitted by the union government and the state government for the development of the enclaves.