New Delhi, July 11: The Governments of India and Bangladesh have decided to introduce the passport and visa system for travel between the two countries with effect from September 1. Enquiries reveal that the initiative for this has come from the Bangladesh Government and the Indian Government has readily agreed to this proposal in view of the large-scale illegal travel between the two countries. At present, a permit system exists for travel from one country to another, but this has not proved very effective in checking unauthorised movement of persons between India and Bangladesh. The Government of India expects that the passport and visa system would only be a temporary affair and when once conditions get stabilised, this could be given up. There have also been several cases of smuggling from India of goods of vital importance into Bangladesh. More recently, it is learnt, there has been an acute shortage of commodities in Bangladesh and this has made smuggling of such goods from India a lucrative business. Though strict vigilance is kept on the border and the cases of smuggling have been on the decrease in the last few days, this is still a problem which has to be tackled. The Border Security Force has, therefore, been given strict instructions to be on their guard.
