The bodies of 10 people were recovered from the fishing trawler floating off the coast of Cox's Bazar. On Sunday, April 23, in the morning, the bodies were recovered. Rafiqul Islam, the officer-in-charge (OC) of Cox's Bazar sadar model police confirmed the matter. However, deceased identity were not yet known.

Deep inside the Sundarbans, aproximately 50 kms from Dhamakhali village in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, a floating border outpost (BOP) manned by the Border Security Force (BSF) guards the waters near the India-Bangladesh border. But it is not the location of BOP Ganga that makes this border outpost unique: it is its 11-member patrol team entirely comprising women constables, the first of its kind in India. The Border Security Force’s (BSF) South Bengal Frontier headquarters announced that a team of female constables, known as Mahila Praharis, have been deployed for the first time in the organization’s history to patrol and operate a floating border outpost in the challenging terrain of the Sundarbans. Their deployment is expected to be particularly effective in preventing smuggling by female smugglers. These floating BOPs come under the water wing of the BSF, which operates in India’s riverine borders in the North Bengal and South Bengal frontier, the Tripura, Mizoram and Cachar frontiers, the Jammu frontier, the Punjab frontier and the Gujarat frontier. Seema, The platoon commander, stated that the conditions at the border outpost are challenging but that it is adequately stocked for the team’s daily needs. She also mentioned that the team is equipped with INSAS rifles. In May this year, Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched a boat ambulance and six floating border outposts (BOPs) in West Bengal as part of an effort to increase surveillance in the Sundarbans region, particularly along the India-Bangladesh border. These BOPs are part of a fleet of nine vessels being custom-built for the water wing of the Border Security Force (BSF) by Cochin Shipyard Limited and classed by the Indian Register of Shipping. BSF officials on board BOP Ganga told Indian Express that these vessels were designed with stowage arrangements for four fast patrol boats that are integral to the BSF’s search and seizure operations in the waters of the Sundarbans. The vessels, 46 metres in length, also come fully equipped for operations that a border outpost would require if it were on land, officials said. The women constables were deployed on these floating BOPs in the Sundarbans in May this year, and for three of the constables in the platoon, this is their first posting after they completed their training programme. “I am from Bihar and for the first few weeks in this region, I was posted on the land border. A few months ago, I was told that this floating BOP would be my first posting and I was curious about what it would be like to be on an outpost in the middle of the water,” said Savita, who joined the force only last year. While three constables are new to the job and BSF’s operations, all others on the BOP have several years of experience under their belt. “While this is a new posting for us, surrounded by water, we have an average of eight to 10 years of experience in the platoon. We have been deployed in other parts of the country like at the Punjab border, the West Bengal border etc. So BSF duties are not new,” explained platoon commander sub-inspector Seema. “We did have discussions in the days just before deployment that this was going to be a challenging environment. We are not really connected to the mainland, but our training is such that we are able to survive,” she added. The Indo-Bangladesh border is complex, BSF officials said, particularly in the Sundarbans, because the area is a combination of riverine areas and dense mangrove forests that receive heavy rainfall. A significant part of this region is also demarcated as the Sundarban National Park, which is home to diverse species of flora and fauna that face constant threats from poachers. Many parts of the Sundarbans are also inaccessible by road. Several smaller tributaries and creeks cut through the Sundarbans, which are traversed daily by fisherfolk, traders and island inhabitants. “Although this is an important trade route, the proximity to the international border with Bangladesh means that it is a sensitive area and is monitored by the BSF,” an official told indianexpress.com, requesting anonymity. While preventing unlawful entry into Indian territory is the BSF’s main responsibility, its constables have found themselves addressing another issue: assisting fishermen stranded in the waters due to seasickness and tackling poachers using waterways to enter the Sundarban National Park. Constable Sumita Mondal has spent nearly a decade in the BSF now and is familiar with the challenges that come with a posting at the India-Bangladesh border. “It is not just illegal smuggling that is a concern here. I have seen incidents where Bangladeshi fishermen attack Indian fishing boats, get into violent fights and steal fish and crabs from boats and head back to Bangladesh,” Mondal said. These incidents happen more frequently when the catch may be low. “So these floating BOPs are useful in stopping those kinds of crimes. But the smugglers have a network of informants, usually connected with fishing boats out in the waters. They pass on information about the location of the smaller patrol boats, as well as information about seizures that we conduct,” she added. While the BSF has marked the deployment of a platoon of Mahila Praharis for border patrolling and operation as one that is historic, some veterans interviewed for this report have questioned whether this is an adequate use of resources. While the Sundarbans is a challenging area to monitor and guard, BSF’s extensive work over the years here has meant that in the past six months, the floating BOP has not made any seizures or apprehensions, constables on BOP Ganga confirmed in interviews. “The women constables are a part of patrolling and are there for operational purposes. They do not man the boat because the boats are commandeered by the water wing,” said Sanjiv Krishan Sood, Additional Director General, BSF (Retd). But Sood believes that the relatively fewer numbers of women constables in the force make them a precious resource that ought to be deployed elsewhere where they can contribute more effectively.

Bangladesh government has given explanation over the BBC report of floating Rohingyas on Andaman Sea. The explanation was given by the foreign ministry on Thursday. The foreign ministry said, recently a BBC report titled ‘Rohingya crisis: UN urges to rescue the floating Rohingyas on sea’ has caught the notice of Bangladesh government. In this report it was wrongly mentioned and claimed that Rohingyas were towards Bangladesh coast. On the other hand it was clearly mentioned in the UNHCR and UN press release that the boat was on the Andaman Sea. The UN notice clearly mentioned about the Andaman Sea. The floating boat on the Andaman was about 1,700 km far from Bangladesh, 492 km from Myanmar, 363 km from Thailand, 281 km from Indonesia and 141 km far from India. The boat was floating far away from Bangladesh water territory. It was also nearer to other countries’ water territories. The foreign ministry also said, Bangladesh is respectful to its international responsibility. In the past when other countries denied of taking the floating Rohingyas, at that time Bangladesh government came forward to save them. Now other countries should bear the responsibility as the boat is floating nearer to them. Bangladesh also thinks that these countries should obey the international laws and also should share the burden of Rohingyas. AH        

Bangladesh has pointed out international community's continuous call only on Bangladesh to shelter Rohingyas floating at Bay on boat saying the other countries of the Bay of Bengal region are not requested to share the burden in a similar way.    Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen urged all the countries to take effective steps quickly to resolve the Rohingya crisis.    He conveyed the message when British Minister of State for the Commonwealth and the United Nations Lord Ahmad made a phone call to him on Monday requesting Bangladesh to give shelter to floating Rohingyas at Bay.    "Despite limited resources, Bangladesh has already given shelter to around 1.1 million Rohingyas on humanitarian ground. The small number of floating 500 Rohingyas are not in Bangladesh territory," he said.    Talking to UNB, a diplomat said it is the responsibility of surrounding countries of the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea to share the responsibility and helping the distressed people in the deep sea.    There are eight countries -- Myanmar, India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Bangladesh – in the Bay of Bengal region.    Foreign Minister Dr Momen said though Bangladesh was requested to give shelter to floating Rohingyas showing humanity, other countries in the region were not requested to do the same thing.   He conveyed the UK Minister to take the floating Rohingyas sending their Royal ship.     The Foreign Minister also said other countries of the world should take 1.1 million Rohingyas and give them shelter in their respective countries.    Earlier, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, sought greater coordination and responsibility-sharing by states to address the maritime movements of refugees and asylum-seekers in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea saving lives.    "We’re increasingly concerned by reports of failure to disembark vessels in distress and of the grave immediate risk this poses to the men, women and children on board," said Indrika Ratwatte, Director of the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific.   The UNHCR official said saving lives at sea must be a collective effort in which any one state that rescues and disembarks refugees can draw on resources pooled from other states in the region.   "Predictable disembarkation and safe pathways for refugees in distress strengthen public health by ensuring that whatever the manner of arrival, people go through appropriate health screening," said Ratwatte.   The UNHCR official said it safeguards prevention measures rather than risking that people will instead seek clandestine points of entry without going through proper quarantine procedures.   Rescue at sea and allowing the persecuted to seek asylum are fundamental tenets of customary international law, by which all states are bound, said the UN agency.    Beyond the current COVID-19 crisis, Ratwatte said, a predictable and humane disembarkation approach will remain critical. "UNHCR is calling on all states to uphold these lifesaving obligations to refugees and asylum-seekers."   The UNHCR said search and rescue, along with prompt disembarkation, are lifesaving acts.    "The dire – and, in many cases, fatal – predicament of thousands of refugees and migrants in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea in 2015 ultimately demonstrated the critical, humanitarian imperative for solidarity and joint action to address threats to life at sea," said Ratwatte.   The 2016 Bali Declaration embodied these principles and outlined the way forward to prevent another crisis in the Andaman Sea.    "We must not return to such life-threatening uncertainty today," said Ratwatte.   In the context of the unprecedented current COVID-19 crisis, the UNHCR official said, all states must manage their borders as they see fit.    "But such measures shouldn’t result in the closure of avenues to asylum, or of forcing people to return to situations of danger. UNHCR stands ready to support Governments in carrying out responsible disembarkation procedures and quarantine measures to ensure that public health issues are addressed."   Ratwatte said the challenge of irregular movement is not unique to Asia.    Refugees and asylum-seekers move through unofficial and often inherently risky channels because it is the only option available to them. The reality for many refugees is that persecution and threats to their lives and well-being are more immediate than COVID-19.   "UNHCR notes and is encouraged by the Association of South East Asian States’ clear commitment to joint action and a whole-of-society approach in the context of COVID-19," said the UNHCR official.    Leaving no-one behind is the only lasting means of ensuring that we collectively beat this global challenge, and they are all only as strong as their most vulnerable members, said Ratwatte. Source: UNB AH

Awami League General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said, boat will not float away rather it will reach shore of victory. 'Boat' the symbol of spirit of liberation war will reach in the shore in the month of victory with the victorious flag. At the same time Awami League won’t bow down to any pressure. He said these while visiting the under construction Sarak Bhaban in the capital on Thursday. On Wednesday BNP standing committee member Moudud Ahmed said at a program of token hunger strike demanding proper treatment and release of Khaleda Zia that their movement will get momentum. He said, such program will be declared so that boat of this government will float away. Obaidul Quader said these in response to Moudud’s speech. Over Road Transport act he said, the new Road Transport bill will be placed in the current session of parliament and I hope that it will be passed in the session. Quader said, BNP has turned into a complain party. They proved them as complain party repeatedly. They will repeat it going to the United Nations. He said, United Nations sends envoy to a particular country if crisis exists there. The envoy tries to solve the crisis. But the United Nations did not send any envoy in Bangladesh as no problem exists here. Obaidul Quader said, following their repeated complains and being irritated the UN has summoned Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir to hear complains. But we have no headache regarding this. But we are not going to comment on the matter hurriedly why he was called to the UN.   He said, we do not know whether UN will hold any discussion with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the national election. They may want a free and fair election. We also want that type of election. AH