We Shall Live In A Pineapple Paisley Garden

Trigger Why we are doing this story

• It’s a tense border. A Human Rights Watch report says 1,000 people have been shot dead by BSF guards in the past decade.

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No wonder then that when Mara heard the news last week that the haat was about to reopen, he rushed to the border—running through Kalaichar village on the Indian side, and Baliamari across the Jingiram river on the Bangladesh side—at ground zero, where the haat is held. Even at his age, Maro lugged a bamboo pole, with two bunches of green bananas tied to it, on his shoulder: more “for old time’s sake” than to really sell for a profit. The trade on the first day of the market was tentative. Mohammed Sahaujjal Sheikh from the Bangladesh side is happy that he got to buy pineapples, which are not readily available in his village. “My granddaughter loves this fruit but it’s not that common where we live,” he says. Sheikh gets a positive response from two sisters from the Garo Hills, Rupila and Rinda, when he asks them if on the next haat day they would bring some samples of the exotic costumes they wear—the mekhla, woven by hand in looms in their houses. He wants the mekhlas for his wife. Nosebala Kalaidu from Meghalaya is eyeing the saris amidst a Bangladeshi trader’s pile, wondering if she can afford it. An Indian who has bartered the ripe bananas he brought with sugarcane brought by a Bangladeshi trader is ecstatic. “Sugarcane is much sought after in the hills. I will sell this in my village market for a good price.”

Border Haat, as the market is called now, has existed since the Mughal era, say officials. Its coming back has spread palpable cheer among locals—on both sides of the border—many of whom don’t have access to goods that are available just across the border. Even Meghalaya chief minister Mukul Sangma is enthused. He says he grew up in a village near the border and has childhood memories of waking up at dawn to the droning sound of bullock carts laden with “exotic goodies” rolling past his house towards the haat. “I am sure the border haat will return to its old glory and open the door to trade in a much bigger way,” he told Outlook.

But why is there so much excitement about a market in the middle of a cluster of villages—the border, after all, is only a 40-year-old artificial line—that must have been growing the same kind of produce and have similar handicrafts? No, says Sangma. “Though connected by land and close in proximity, the topography of India’s West Garo Hills and Bangladesh’s Kurigram district, under which Baliamari falls, is very distinctive. While the former is a hilly region, they have plains on the Bangladesh side.” So, the hills around Kalaichar are conducive to the growing of fruits like apples, pineapples, oranges and vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage. Cooler temperatures also means the weaving of woollen garments, shawls and blankets. The plains on which Baliamari lies are more suited for foodgrain and tropical vegetables. “Bangladesh, with a network of rivers dissecting it, is also a big exporter of fish, a commodity hard to find in local markets of the Indian hills,” adds Sangma.

The reopening of the haat comes at a time when India and Bangladesh have formally agreed to try and strengthen bilateral ties—political, economic and cultural—after a period of strained relations during the last regime. The inauguration of the haat on July 24 was symbolically important enough for both the commerce ministers of Bangladesh and India, Mohammed Faruk Khan and Anand Sharma, to be present along with CM Sangma. The groundwork for this bonhomous event was laid when Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina visited India last year. The opening ceremony—“a historic moment,” said Mohammed Faruk Khan—drew a crowd of hundreds of enthusiastic villagers from both sides of the border.

Borders being opened up for free trade is all very well, but there remains the matter of security. Especially since large stretches of the India-Bangladesh border are well-known as vulnerable points for cross-border crime, including illegal immigration, drugs and arms smuggling and human trafficking—the best sort of circumstances for terrorist movement. The idea is to make things foolproof, but not harp on it. “We have to remember we are not hostile countries and that Bangladesh is our friendly neighbour and the border haat is a reinforcement of lost ties,” points out Abhishek Bhagotia, additional district commissioner, West Garo Hills District, who has been overseeing the project’s implementation. However, he stresses that all security concerns have been taken care of as there are very strict rules for trading in place.

There is an extensive list of banned items as well. “Certain kinds of merchandise like branded garments, other branded goods and products manufactured by big companies are banned,” says Bhagotia. “The idea is not to flood the markets of one country with big brands of the other. The endeavour is to increase goodwill by reviving both India-Bangladesh economic ties and the local bonhomie that had traditionally existed in the remote areas by encouraging small traders to sell their locally produced fare.” Thus, on day one, those who bought or sold fruits, vegetables and locally woven garments such as handloom saris, lungis and gamchhas (towels) were allowed to do so. Those looking for branded plastic, glass or melamine products had to return empty-handed. “From the next haat onward, they won’t even be allowed to enter with these items,” said a customs officer. To be sure, these restrictions didn’t go down well with some. Mohammed Anwar Hussain, a 36-year-old vendor from Bangladesh, complained that “though the Indian buyers want to buy my goods—company-made synthetic garments—they are not being allowed to”. He will return next week with hand-made garments.

Apart from these restrictions, there will be the routine security drill at the border checkpost. Border guards are to frisk traders at the time of entry and exit. The Border Security Force (BSF) and the Border Guard of Bangladesh (BGD) will play a crucial role during the haat’s operation. “We have been instructed not to intimidate with our presence and to be friendly,” says a BSF guard, but adds that “at the same time we have strict instructions to be watchful.” In fact, the hoary Ganjam Mara, with his load of bananas, was stopped at the border gates this week. He cannot hawk his fare because he has not applied for a vendor’s license. “Next time, dadu,” a BSF guard tells him tenderly.

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Also Guwahati October 16, 2010

• At 100, Bholaram Das has lived an adage—you’re never too old to learn. He became India’s oldest varsity student when he enrolled for a PhD at Gauhati University. In his long life, Bholaram has been a teacher, a lawyer, and a judge. The freedom fighter chose a favourite topic: he will delve into the role of his village in Barpeta, west Assam, in the spread of the neo-Vaishnavite movement.