Border haats along the international border to open soon

By  Firstdespatch Desk   Dec 23, 2022

Agartala, Dec 23 (FD) Business in the two border haats (Border markets) of Tripura along the Indo-Bangla international border would resume soon, which were shut due to  Covid pandemic, will be reopened for normal trade "very soon", a senior official said on Friday.

The two border haats - one at Srinagar in South Tripura district and Kamalasagar in Sepahijala were closed suspending bilateral trade with Bangladesh when Covid hit the state in April, 2020.

BJP Rajya Sabha MP and former chief minister Biplab Deb raised the issue in Rajya Sabha recently and urged the Centre to reopen them at the earliest.

Deb also urged for expediting the work of setting up two proposed border haats at Kamalpur in Dhalai district and Ragna in North Tripura district.

"We are in touch with the union ministry of commerce to reopen the border haats. Srinagar and Kamalasagar border haats will be reopened very shortly," said the director of industries and commerce Vishwasree B.

The state has been trying to reopen the border haats for a long time so that the bilateral trade could resume but it got delayed somehow. They will reopen probably at the end of this month, she added.

Business in the haat takes place once a week among the people living within 5 km radius of the border, who sale locally produced goods and crops.

No local taxes are imposed on the traders for selling their products. FD JK