Assam meeting to stress ties with Bangladesh

As many as eight Chief Ministers of northeastern States (including Sikkim) on Thursday would highlight the need to improve the transport and communication links with Bangladesh when they meet India's new minister for the remote region.

Gautam Debroy, New Delhibdnews24.com
Published : 21 August 2014, 04:28 AM
Updated : 21 August 2014, 04:28 AM

India’s minister for development of northeastern region (DoNER) VK Singh has called for a meeting of all the northeastern state governments.

The two-day-long meeting, scheduled on Aug 21-22 at Assam's Guwahati, will discuss on the overall development of the region.

On several other occasions Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar have reiterated their stand on improving the transport and communication network with Bangladesh.

They (Chief Ministers) feel that improvement on this front would definitely improve the economic condition of the land locked region.

Meanwhile, Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma is likely to raise another contentious issue on the use of Bangladeshi mobile phone operator's network by the Indians living along the bordering areas.

Sangma has already raised the matter with the Indian Home Ministry.

Quoting intelligence reports, Sangma said his government has come across several such complaints where businessmen received extortion calls from across the border.

This assumes significance, as military intelligence in New Delhi has reports that rebels of the region (northeastern States) were increasingly using SIM cards of foreign countries, including international roaming, to make it difficult for Indian security agencies to trace their location.

According to the reports, northeastern militants are using SIM cards of Bangladesh and Myanmar to avoid electronic surveillance by Indian intelligence and security agencies.

On several occasions underground activists were apprehended and foreign SIM cards were seized from their possession.

According to the government official, it’s a trouble free procedure to obtain a SIM card of Bangladeshi service providers in some areas along the Indian border-states like Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and West Bengal.

“Network of such SIM cards without international roaming is available even up to 10 to 20 kilometers across the border on the Indian side,” an intelligence official said.

Although, India’s state-owned telecoms major, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), has provided cell phone service in northeast, its costs has compelled the bordering people to use Bangladeshi mobile company's service.