Reinforcing bamboo fence, vigil at night: Meghalaya villagers on edge after Bangladesh unrest

From reinforcing a bamboo fence separating them from Bangladeshis to staying up all night for vigil the residents of a Meghalaya village located metres away from the international border are on the edge fearing influx of people from the other side after the unrest that overthrew the Sheikh Hasina governmentThe 90odd residents of Lyngkhong village in the East Khasi Hills district had constructed a ragtag bamboo fence along the border during the Covid pandemic to prevent petty crimes from across the borderLyngkhong is one of several sectors in Meghalaya where border fence could not be constructed owing to land demarcation issues and the presence of habitation within 150 yards of the international border pillar or zero lineA quick tour of the village revealed that most of the houses were located very close to the international border while the only football ground is situated on the zero line with children playing under the watchful eyes of the Border Security Force BSF at all timesAlthough Lyngkhong has not experienced any serious incident since the fall of the Hasina government on August 5 villagers remain in a state of constant fearOn August 5 we were anxious and could not sleep at night fearing that our neighbours in Bangladesh might turn violent Thankfully the Border Security Force increased its vigil posting more personnel at its Lyngkhong outpost in addition to the village defence party and the men who stayed up all night to ensure our safety Deria Khongsdir a 42yearold mother of nine told PTI while recounting her anxietyDeria and her younger sister live just a few metres away from their Bangladeshi neighbours with an international border IB pillar and the bamboo fence constructed by the villagers three years ago serving as their only protectionThis bamboo fence is our only protection It has helped prevent petty crimes at the village level but we are uncertain if it will be effective in a more serious situation she saidVillagers have now added fresh bamboo to the fence to reinforce itLyngkhong falls within 150 yards of the zero line and as per norms a barbed wire fence can be constructed only after 150 yards So when foundation was laid for a fence in 2021 it left the village outside of the protection of the fenceFierce protests by villagers forced work to halt They also erected the bamboo fence at the zero line and urged authorities to erect the barbed wire fence along that lineNegotiations are currently underway between the higher authorities of the two countries to have the barbed wire fence built at the zero line protecting Lyngkhong officials saidAround 80 per cent of the 443 kmlong IndiaBangladesh border in Meghalaya has been fenced except in areas where Border Guards Bangladesh oppose it or where the terrain is too difficult for constructionBy convention the fence should be built at least 150 yards from the zero line but thats not always the case BGB sometimes allows fence to be built at the zero line depending on the presence of habitation as in Lyngkhong a senior official of the BSFs Meghalaya Frontier saidThe Government of Bangladesh has agreed to this arrangement in at least seven locations along the border in Meghalaya and discussions are underway to extend this to LyngkhongHowever approval is still pending for at least 13 such areas and obtaining it is a long and arduous processWe sent a similar proposal in 2011 but concurrences were only received in 2020 for certain areas the official said without providing further detailsDabling Khongsdir the matriarch of Lyngkhong and a landowner expressed deep resentment over the Indian governments handling of the fence issueIt is not fair that our village would fall outside of the Indian territory after the fence is built We do not feel safe We want to feel secure We have lived here since time immemorial We hope the new government in Bangladesh and the Government of India would resolve this soon she saidAlthough there is a BSF outpost in the village Dabling said antinational elements often take advantage of the porous border especially at nightLyngkhong is connected only by border roads The village lacks electricity relying on solar power for lighting and wood for cookingRamu Khongsdir Dablings son and the village headman expressed concern over Lyngkhongs vulnerable positionDuring unrest in Bangladesh we cannot sleep peacefully he said urging Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma and local MP Ricky Syngkon to consider the villagers requestWe want the barbed wire fence to come up as soon as possible he said noting that even the border roads are under BSF control limiting their useWith PTI inputs