Changrabandha — Leaving home can be exciting, but also heartbreaking. Both the emotions Thursday found voice when the first group of enclave residents crossed over from Bangladesh to Cooch Behar.
When the bus carrying 67 of them rolled into the Changrabanda checkpost on the Indian side, Swapna Barman could not hold back her tears.
The Indian homemaker used to stay in Gotamari village, a former Indian enclave that has been merged with Bangladesh after the Land Boundary Agreement was signed.
“I got married in a family that lived in the Indian enclave. My husband and his family decided to move to India, so I followed them. I will miss seeing my parents and my brothers and sisters whom I have left behind,” she said.
Swapna, 19, became a mother in the enclave, In her arms was her daughter born on October 20. The infant will be among the first generation of Indian enclave children to be raised on the Indian mainland.
Unlike Swapna, not all are sad. For Class VIII girl Subarna Barman, stepping into India was a thrilling moment. “After my parents decided to move to India, I spent sleepless nights. I was waiting for the opportunity to come to India,” she said.
The bus carrying the 67 former enclave dwellers and four trucks with their belongings crossed the international check-post in Changrabanda at 1.15pm today.
The settlers were accompanied by Sandip Mitra, the Indian deputy high commissioner posted at Rajshahi in Bangldesh.
Cooch Behar district magistrate P. Ulaganathan and other senior officials of the district administration received the residents at the border.
Trinamul Natabari MLA and the party’s district president Rabindranath Ghosh was present, The Telegraph reported.
The settlers are from Latamari and Gotamari enclaves which have now merged with the Bangladesh mainland.
After travelling about 70km from their former homes, the group was taken to the Enclave Settlement Camp at Mekhliganj’s Bhotbari, about 3km from the international border.
The camp has 50 units. Each unit has two rooms, a kitchen and a toilet. The administration has set up an anganwadi centre, a primary school and a health clinic in each camp.
Apart from Mekhliganj, the state government has also set up settlement camps at Dinhata, Haldibari and Sahebganj to accommodate total 220 families comprising 991 individuals.
Mukul Chandra Barman, 70, who crossed over to India today, said: “We are labourers and we had about eight bighas of land. There was lack of jobs in Gotamari and many people from the enclave and Bangladesh mainland entered India illegally insearch of work. I thought this was an opportunity for us. It is true that we will miss our village, but we think we will have a better future here.”
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee posted a message on Facebook today welcoming the settlers from ” opar bangla (the other Bengal which is a way of referring to Bangladesh)” and assured “our government will take full care of them”.
District magistrate Ulaganathan said the settlers would stay at the camps for two years. “After that, they will be provided with proper housing. We have set up a camp of the State Bank of India where they can open accounts and exchange Bangladeshi currency.” he said.