Agartala, April 21: Tripura Public Works Department Secretary Kiran Gitte said multiple protective measures—including embankment construction—are underway to safeguard Belonia and adjoining habitations.
A high-level delegation on Sunday visited the border town of Belonia and nearby villages in the South Tripura district to assess the potential impact of an embankment being constructed by the Bangladesh government along the Muhuri River, which demarcates the boundary between the two nations.
Led by Tripura Public Works Department Secretary Kiran Gitte, the delegation conducted an on-the-spot study of the area and interacted with local villagers and elected representatives, including the Chairman of the Belonia Municipal Council.
He added that the works will be intensified to address vulnerabilities exposed during the catastrophic floods and landslides of August last year, which damaged numerous embankments and infrastructure along the India-Bangladesh border.
Gitte revealed that 43 such vulnerable locations have been identified across several districts including South Tripura.
“By June this year, all the repairing and related works would be completed. Work would be done round-the-clock. As the volume of work is very big in the South Tripura district, five additional engineers would be posted in the district,” he said .
The delegation included senior officials from the Border Security Force (BSF), Water Resource and Public Works Departments, the South Tripura District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police, and other department heads.
BSF’s Tripura Frontier Inspector General Ashwani Kumar Sharma was also present.
Concerns have been mounting in southern Tripura over the embankment being built by the Bangladesh government opposite Belonia, with residents fearing that it could worsen flooding risks during the monsoon season. Villagers from Ballamukh, Ishan Chandranagar, and surrounding areas have voiced their apprehension over the large-scale construction activity on the opposite side of the border.
On Saturday, local CPI(M) MLA Dipankar Sen urged the South Tripura District Magistrate and BSF officials to escalate the issue to the Central government for diplomatic intervention.
A similar embankment being constructed in northern Tripura’s Unakoti district has raised alarms in Kailashahar and nearby villages. The opposition Congress has launched a series of protests in the region. Former minister and senior Congress leader Birajit Sinha accused the Bangladesh government of acting unilaterally and warned of potential flooding risks posed by the embankment.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha has also taken up the matter with Union Home Minister Amit Shah. In a letter, he flagged the risks posed by the Bangladeshi embankment in Unakoti and urged the Centre to engage with Dhaka to mitigate any threats to Indian territory.
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