Visa woes slow Petrapole border's road to normalcy

A steady stream of passengers is seen heading towards the Petrapole terminal, the largest land port in South Asia, along the India-Bangladesh border, about 80 km from Kolkata. Many bound for Bangladesh are carrying heavy blankets, oddly defying the time of the year. Meanwhile, a dhaki crossing into India signals that Durga Puja is just around the corner.

- ISHITA AYAN DUTT

The political upheaval in Bangladesh, which led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5, had weighed heavily on the passenger movement initially. Trade was briefly halted, and the border post on the eastern front remained quiet.

Two months into the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, some normalcy has returned to the border.

The passenger movement at the land port is catching up with normal times on most days. The cargo terminal looks busy with trucks coming in from the other side, some are waiting to be loaded. The ecosystem, bruised and battered till last month, is picking up the pieces. But curbs on visa issuance appear to be the biggest stumbling block.

Immigration authorities of Petrapole said a major drop in passenger traffic was seen between August 5 and August 7. "Thereafter it started picking up, peaking on September 20 at over 6,700. It's been steady since, at around 6,000 on most days."

Most travellers from Bangladesh, however, already have valid Indian visas issued earlier.