India-Bhutan BDCC meeting tackles border flooding, smuggling, connectivity

Jalpaiguri: The 26th Border District Coordination Committee (BDCC) meeting between India and Bhutan commenced on Thursday at a private resort in Chalsa in Jalpaiguri district. The two-day meeting, set to conclude on Friday, focuses on strengthening cooperation and addressing key issues affecting the border districts of both countries.

Discussions covered various issues, including flood control in border areas, afforestation efforts in the Bhutan hills, preventing the obstruction of river flow due to dolomite deposits, and the proposed expansion of railway connectivity between the two nations.

West Bengal was represented by Jalpaiguri Divisional Commissioner Anup Kumar Agarwal, IG North Bengal Rajesh Kumar Yadav, Additional Chief Conservator of Forest, Rajesh Kumar, along with the District Magistrates and Superintendents of Police from Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, Cooch Behar, and Alipurduar districts. The 22-member Bhutanese delegation was led by Bhutan’s Director General Daso Pasong Dorji and security officer Karma Dorji, among others. Security measures were heightened, with a strong police presence around the venue since morning to ensure the smooth conduct of the meeting.

One of the critical issues discussed was the recurring flooding in areas like Nagrakata and Banarhat in Jalpaiguri, and Birpara, Madarihat, Kalchini, Kumaragram, and Falakata in Alipurduar. These floods, often triggered by Bhutan’s rivers and streams, cause significant damage to agriculture, residential areas, and tea plantations. Additionally, landslides in Bhutan’s hills exacerbate the problem by depositing sand, pebbles, and stones in the riverbeds, reducing their capacity to handle high water levels. In response to these concerns, river experts from the Central Government’s River Research Institute, along with a high-powered team from the Irrigation Department, recently conducted a field assessment. The team raised strong concerns about the flood vulnerabilities in the Dooars and the contribution of upstream runoff from Bhutan. Discussions also touched on the persistent issue of smuggling petrol and diesel from Bhutan, which has been a long-standing challenge in the region.

At the time of the filing of this report, the meeting was still going on with no official statements

issued yet.