Border killings come down: FM

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen today said the killing incidents along Bangladesh-India border have significantly come down in the recent years.

Citing some recent facts, the foreign minister said more than one hundred people were killed on the bordering areas between 2001 and 2002.

Around 66 people were killed in 2003 while 3 to 4 people in last year, Momen said while talking to journalists at Sylhet MAG Osmani International Airport this afternoon.

Claiming that the people who have been killed on the bordering areas were either smugglers or illegal intruders in India, Momen said the incidents of border killings will come down if the illegal border crossing is prevented.

About the recent deals with India, the foreign minister said Bangladesh will be benefited by the gas export deal and it is indeed a good news for the country.

About the water-sharing deal of Feni River with India, he said the neighbouring country has been allowed to withdraw water from the river for a town with only six thousand people.

Before inking the deal, India used to withdraw water from the river using pumps, but now it has been allowed to withdraw a limited scale of water under its own monitoring system, he said.