Thousands of people from different parts of Tripura and Bangladesh visited the market on its resumption
Mrinal Banik, Agartala: One of the two border haats or weekly trade marts along the Bangladesh border in Srinagar under South Tripura district of Tripura finally reopened for visitors, vendors and consumers on Tuesday after more than three years, after it was suspended because of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
This particular border trade point is a source of economic and cultural exchange between the local communities of South Tripura’s Sabroom subdivision in the Indian side and Bangladesh’s Feni district.
Thousands of people from different parts of Tripura and Bangladesh visited the market on its resumption. Speaking to EastMojo, District Magistrate South Tripura District Saju Waheed said, “More than three years have passed since the market was closed. I have been posted here for two years and the resumption of trade is a result of several rounds of meetings between the stakeholders and Border Haat Management Committees.”
A total of 1,200 vendors registered at the mart on Tuesday. “All the old vendors who had received ID cards as an approval to do business in this special site had been allowed to put up their shops in the sheds,” Waheed said.
The ID cards of most vendors expired as they could not do business for three years. The matter was raised in the last Border Management Committee meeting, where members unanimously agreed to extension of the validity of the ID cards.
“Accordingly, fresh cards with extended validity had been provided to all the vendors,” the DM added.
The Srinagar border haat is unique for the availability of fresh fish. “Most of the people come here to buy fresh fish that comes from Bangladesh. This is the most significant part of this mart,” the District Magistrate said.
People reportedly visit this market from faraway places to buy Hilsa fish.
