Bangla speaking people from different areas of Bangladesh and India throng Betna border in Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon district to avail the 'once a year' opportunity to meet their dear and near ones across the border on Friday as the BGB and Indian BSF give the opportunity unofficially on Pahela Baishakh, the first day of Bangla New Year (as per Bangla calendar of India). Photo: STARPahela Baishakh, the first day of Bangla New Year (as per Bangla calendar of India) on Friday, presented a different scene on Betna border in Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon district as thousands of Bangla speaking people from two sides of the border got a unique opportunity to meet their relatives for some time.
Standing on both sides of the barbed wire fence on the border, people from different districts of Bangladesh and India exchanged greetings and talked heartily with their near and dear ones. They were seen exchanging various things like biscuits, chanachur, pens, clothes and towels.
Seeing near and dear ones after a long time, many of them could not check their tears.
A large number of people in both countries, especially those who cannot afford the expenditure to visit their relatives across the border through legal procedure, eagerly wait for this special day when local public representatives from two sides make the arrangement with the help of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Indian Border Security Force (BSF).
Altafur Rahman, 50, of Chowrangi village under Haripur upazila in Thakurgaon, came here to meet with his brother-in-law Sirazul Islam, who lives in Paharpur of Uttar Dinajpur district in India. It is six years that they met last.
Bikash Roy, 35, of Shiliguri in India came here to meet his father while Ananta Bala, 32, of Farabari village came to meet her brother and sisters.
BSF opened the door of the barbed wire fence around 1:30pm for an hour to facilitate people to come to the border.
"Every year on this day people from both sides come here to meet with their relatives. We make the arrangement through discussion with the BSF," said a BGB official.
"As residents of the same country, many people living in different areas were related in various ways for long. But the 1947 partition and creation of India and the then Pakistan made it hard for people to meet their friends and relatives living on the other side of the border. We make the unofficial arrangement for their meeting with the help of BGB and BSF officials," said Nazrul Islam, chairman of Haripur union parishad.
Similar reunion of Bangla speaking people from India and Bangladesh
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