BDR officials visit Malda

Statesman News Service

MALDA, Oct. 3: Officials of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) visited the Indian side of the border at Rishipur and Krishnanagar on Sunday to study the system adopted by the Malda irrigation department to stem erosion on the bank of the Mahananda, an irrigation official said today. “It was a friendly visit by the BDR officials. The two sides ~ BSF and BDR ~ discussed on many issues during the meeting. The BDR officials did not object to the work carried out by the Malda irrigation department to stem erosion on the bank of the Mahananda. They are now likely to adopt the same system in their country to save their properties getting destructed by erosion during monsoon”, the official added. It may be recalled that the border guards of the two countries had resorted to a massive gunbattle last year on the issue of palliative measures taken by the Indian officials on the bank of the Mahananda at Muchia and Adampur, close to the Krishnagar border outpost. On request of the BSF officials, the Malda district irrigation officials have continued the anti-erosion work on the bank of the Mahananda at Old Malda, Habibpur and Bamongola where two rivers ~ Mahananda and Punarbhaba ~ are eroding its bank line, thereby affecting the fencing work, crop lands and even a few border outposts of the BSF. The BDR officials reportedly told their BSF counterparts that they were facing erosion problem of on the banks of the Mahananda and the Punarbhaba on their side of the border. The Malda irrigation officials have prepared four schemes for permanent protection of lands on the Indian side and these are awaiting nod from higher authorities. It may be recalled that after last year’s gunbattle between the border guards of the two countries, a joint survey was conducted along the border and a new alignment had been finalised on the banks of the Mahananda.