Janakpurdham, Dec. 28: Naresh Prasad Yadav, chairman of Ward No 2 of Mukhiyapatti Musaharniya Rural Municipality along the Nepal-India border in Dhanusha district, has complained that he has been unable to build a temporary bridge over the Jamuni River because of the trouble created by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) of India. 

Yadav said that when the river changed its course, the arable land of many farmers in the ward reached across the Jamuni River near the Nepal-India border. Although the two sides officially agreed to allow the Nepali farmers to cultivate there, in the absence of a bridge to cross the river, farmers have been forced to leave their fields barren.

Similarly, Rajkumari Yadav of the same village said that the people travelling during the rainy season have to face difficulties because of lack of physical structures like bridges. 

She said, “My mother’s place is in Jayanagar, India. Members of my husband’s family and my maternal family frequently visit both India and Nepal, however, due to the lack of a bridge for smooth movement at the border, they have to face difficulties,” she said. The people of the village were happy when they heard that a bridge was going to be built in the border area, but when SSB of India did not allow the construction of the bridge, the work had been lying idle for years. 

“Temporary crossings made using the Hume pipes could be used only for a certain time. Therefore, the citizens of both countries are facing difficulty in commuting,” ward chair Yadav said. He said that most of the rivers could be easily crossed during the dry season, but during the rainy season, it was difficult to cross them. 

Rajkumari also questioned what kind of relationship the two neighbouring countries have been enjoying. “I have been a witness to this situation for 34 years, the condition of the border area is the same as it was 34 years ago when I came here as a bride. The only difference is that the river has changed its course,” she said. 

Avinash Chaudhary, a local of Jatahi in Dhanusha Nagarine Municipality, said that the rules should be equal for the citizens of both countries. However, the SSB personnel easily enter Nepal without seeking permission at any time and go back to India across the border. “Leaders of Nepal hesitate to raise the border issue, this is why the bridge of Jatahi border point has not been built,” he said.  

Even though when the representatives of the Nepali people are trying to build a new structure next to the old bridge, SSB has not allowed them to build it, he added. According to Rajiv Jha, Chairman of Nepal-India Open Border Dialogue Group, the people of the border area have to suffer when the open border between Nepal and India has not been managed in such a way that could help make the relationship between the two countries more harmonious. 

His organisation has also been reporting time and again about excesses on the Nepal-India border. Chairman Jha said that according to the 1950 Friendship Treaty between Nepal and India, the citizens of the two countries should be treated equally. Citizens of both countries should be able to move from one country to another with respect. However, citizens of Nepal here are treated disrespectfully, Jha said. 

The Border Dialogue Group has repeatedly raised its voice on such issues, demanding that the governments of both countries should be serious about ending the abusive behaviours at the border area. Devi Sahai Meena, Consul General of the Consulate General of the Government of India in Birgunj, said that it was not appropriate to give any response on the phone about the issue relating to the border area.