A total of fifty people in Thkurgaon who have been involved in smuggling goods through the border in the past, have returned to normal life, vowing to continue leading a clean life.
They surrendered to the Border Guard of Bangladesh (BGB) at the Atgharia High School of Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon district on Sunday afternoon.
Commander of BGB Battalion 50, Lt. Colonel Md Tanzir Ahmad, local administration, and public representative were present at that time.
Lt. Colonel Md Tanjir Ahmad said the person involved with the smugglers gave a formal commitment to the BGB saying that they would abandon smuggling and return to normal life.
Later, he urged them to help stop border killing, prevent illegal trespassing, and refrain from crossing the zero line at the border.
When this correspondent spoke with the residents of the border area of Haripur, it was learnt that most of the people in the villages are poor. In the hope of earning, many villagers, both men and women, were involved in the illegal transport of various goods, including cattle, across the border as their only means of livelihood. Those people of the border area are now surrendering and they have started to return to a normal life, owing to the multifaceted activities of the BGB 50 Battalion.
Nazrul Islam, a school teacher in the Gedura area, said that the people involved in smuggling are now on the right track with the help of BGB, so the people of the area feel relieved. However, the government should come forward for the socio-economic development of these marginalized men and women to eradicate smuggling.
