![Tripura: Miscreants Disrupted Trading at the India-Bangladesh“Border Haat”](http://media.assettype.com/english-sentinelassam%2Fimport%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2Fborder-haat-1.jpg?w=480&auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max)
Guwahati: Miscreants on Tuesday allegedly disrupted trading at the India-Bangladesh “Border Haat” in Tripura. Later authorities asked the police to take action against those who were preventing vendors from entering the border market.
Talking about the incident, Additional District Magistrate (ADM) of Sepahijala District Suresh Chandra Das said, “Some people are reportedly preventing. license holder vendors to enter the Kamlasagar ‘Border Haat’. I have personally visited the Kamlasagar border market and asked the police to take action against those who are creating trouble."
Das, who is the Co-Chairman of the Kamlasagar “Border Haat” management committee, said that out of the 25 vendors from the Indian side, only two sellers had opened their shops on Sunday.
Talking to the media about the incident, the existing vendors said that some people, backed by the ruling parties, were preventing license holder vendors, selected for three years during the previous Left Front government, from carrying out their business since October 28.
Shyamal Kar, an Indian vendor said, “As the Indian vendors were not allowed to open their shops, Bangladeshi vendors and buyers were not interested to come to the market.”
India and Bangladesh have so far set up four “Border Haats” (markets) in Tripura and Meghalaya. The ‘Border Haat’ is not only a marketplace but also a meeting ground for friends and relatives from both sides of the border. In the “Border Haat”, 25 vendors each from India and Bangladesh are allowed to sell their local produce without any duty or tax.
The trade at border haats is permitted to be carried out in Indian Rupees/Bangladesh Taka and on a barter basis, and data of such trade is maintained by the Haat Management Committee of the respective border haat.
The border haats aim at promoting the wellbeing of the people dwelling in remote areas across the borders of two countries by establishing a traditional system of marketing the local produce through local markets.
Officials of the two countries recently held meetings here to set up six more “Border Haats” along the frontiers with the northeastern states.
The states of Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Assam share a 1,880 km border with Bangladesh.
The government of India has also executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of the Republic of Union of Myanmar on the establishment of border haats along their border.