More and more students are coming from Bangladesh to West Bengal, train services remain suspended

More than 200 students from Bangladesh entered India on Monday through the Land Customs Station (LCS) in Gede and the Integrated Check Post (ICP) in Petrapole in West Bengal.

This brought the number of students who had entered West Bengal since the unrest in the neighboring country began to 1,419. Of these, 1,221 were Indian students, 187 came from Nepal and four from Bhutan.

Of the migrants on Monday, 169 came through Petrapole and 48 through Gede; 35 of these students were from Nepal. Of the total number

After arrival at the border, the BSF South Bengal Frontier conducted medical check-ups to ensure the health and well-being of the students and special care counters were also set up to provide comprehensive assistance to all incoming students, a press release from the BSF South Bengal Frontier said.

The BSF had also organized counselling sessions to help the students deal with the fear and anxiety they had experienced in Bangladesh.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Sunday that the state would open its doors to people in need from the neighbouring country. She stressed that there was a United Nations resolution to accommodate refugees in the regions bordering the troubled area. Her comments drew sharp criticism from the leadership of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who said it was an “evil plan of the INDIA bloc” to settle illegal refugees.

Meanwhile, train services between the two countries remained suspended. “Due to unavoidable circumstances, 13108 Kolkata – Dhaka Maitree Express scheduled to depart from Kolkata on 24.07.2024 and 13110 Dhaka – Kolkata Maitree Express scheduled to arrive in Kolkata on 24.07.2024 remain cancelled,” said a press release from Eastern Railway. The suspension of services began on July 19.