Indo-Bangladeshi barrier

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Bangladesh is enclosed almost entirely by India.
Bangladesh is enclosed almost entirely by India.

The Indo-Bangladeshi barrier is a 4,000-kilometer fence India is presently constructing to seal off the Indian-Bangladeshi international border of India from what was formerly East Bengal. East Bengal was a partitioned region of Bengal, belonging to East Pakistan from 1947 to 1971. This obstruction will virtually isolate Bangladesh from the rest of India.[1]

The barrier's plan is based on the designs of the Israeli West Bank barrier and will be just under three meters high. The stated aim of the fence is to stop infiltration of terrorists, prevent smuggling, and to bring a close to the illegal immigration from Bangladesh into neighbouring states. Clashes have occurred with Bangladeshi Border Patrols as Bangladesh claims that the fence runs within 150 meters of the demarcated border. According to a 1974 peace treaty between India and Bangladesh, neither side is allowed to build defensive works within 150 meters of the frontier. Due to the fact that the fence stands so far back from the border, it has cut off thousands of Bengali Indians from the rest of Mainland India. Indigenous Assamese also fear that they, as a people, will be reduced to a minority if unabated infiltration continues.[2][3]

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[edit] Construction

In a construction project that will eventually reach across 2,500 miles, hundreds of rivers and long stretches of forests and fields, India has been quietly sealing itself off from Bangladesh, its smaller neighbour. The barrier itself will be a barbed wire, concrete fence being constructed by India around Bangladesh. Sections of the barrier totaling about 1,550 miles have been built over the past seven years. There is no clear completion date for the US $1.2 billion project yet. The barrier when complete will be patrolled by the Border Security Force. The fence will also be electrified at some stretches.[4]

[edit] See also


[edit] Notes

  1. ^ India fences off Bangladesh to keep out Muslim terror. Times online. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
  2. ^ India-Bangladesh News from India. India Monitor. Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
  3. ^ Livelihoods on line at Indian border. BBC News. Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
  4. ^ Villagers left in limbo by border fence. BBC News. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.

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