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Nearly 14,000 people become new citizens of India as land swap starts

by IBNS 01 Aug 2015, 12:13 am

Cooch Behar, West Bengtal, Aug 1 (IBNS) Nearly 14,000 people became Indian nationals one minute past midnight on Saturday as India gained access to 55 Bangladeshi enclaves in a historic land swap amid a huge celebration of crowds who remained stateless for nearly 70 years.

Officials of the two nations will, in formal ceremonies on Saturday morning, hoist their respective national flags in 162 enclaves - 111 in Bangladesh and 51 in India - to assume sovereignty over the territories following a historic border agreement in June.

However,  people of Bangladeshi enclaves which integrated with India hoisted the national tricolour in many places to express their joy over their new-found dignity and at the end of the limbo that caused immense distress to generations. 

They will now gain citizenship benefits such as schools, power and healthcare which they have lacked for decades.

A landmark Land Boundary Agreement endorsed in June by  Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina decided that the adversely held "islands" will cease to exist as each country will assume sovereignty over all enclaves in its territory.

About 37,000 people had been living in Indian enclaves in Bangladesh while 14,000 people were in Bangladeshi enclaves in India.