Amid Bangladesh quota violence, trade with India remains suspended

India-Bangladesh trade via West Bengal’s land ports remained suspended for a second day on Monday due to continuing violence in that country. But there was a limited movement of passengers.

Goods trucks have not moved since Sunday as the Petrapole land port in Bangladesh was non-functional due to a government-declared holiday.

Petrapole serves as South Asia's largest land port and plays a crucial role in facilitating trade between India and Bangladesh, with hundreds of trucks usually crossing daily.

Students return to India

While trade is stalled, passenger movement continued in low numbers. "The movement of people, mainly students, continues across the borders. So far, more than 700 students have arrived from Bangladesh," said Kamlesh Saini of the Land Port Authority of India told PTI.

So far, more than 4,500 Indian students have returned home from Bangladesh due to violence in that country that has left over 100 people dead.

Help in border areas

Saini said a help desk has been set up to assist arriving students with basic necessities.

The Border Security Force has also set up special help desks along the border to ensure the safe return of students.

Trade through other land ports in West Bengal including Gojadanga, Fulbari and Mahadipur also remains suspended as the Bangladeshi Customs offices are closed.

Indian trucks in Bangladesh

Indian officials are in talks with their counterparts to facilitate the return of trucks and drivers stranded in Bangladesh.

Currently, some 800 trucks loaded with merchandise are stranded in parking lots awaiting clearance to cross the border.

Internet snapped

Meanwhile, Internet and mobile data services are still down despite apparent calm in Bangladesh.

A judicial verdict has scaled back a controversial quota system for government jobs after weeks of relentless protests that turned bloody.

The government has declared Monday a public holiday, with only essential services running.

Violence over quotas

This comes after a curfew with a shoot-on-sight order was clamped days earlier. Soldiers could be seen patrolling Dhaka and other cities.

Bangladesh witnessed clashes between the police and mainly student protesters demanding an end to a quota that reserved 30 per cent of government jobs for relatives of veterans who fought in the war of independence in 1971.

Judicial intervention

The violence has killed more than a hundred people, according to media reports.

The Supreme Court ordered the veterans' quota to be cut to 5 per cent, with 93 per cent of jobs allocated on merit.