Nomadic Indian

Mini BANGLADESH Inside INDIA? Teen Bigha Corridor

What happens when a piece of one country is completely trapped inside another? Welcome to the Tin Bigha Corridor! In this video, I explore one of the most confusing and fascinating geopolitical borders in the world, located right here in West Bengal.This video also marks the epic conclusion of my long journey! 🏍️ We started all the way back in Odisha, crossed through some incredible landscapes, and I’ve finally reached home in Guwahati. It has been a massive one-way adventure, and stopping to witness this border anomaly was the perfect way to wrap it up.What exactly is the Tin Bigha Corridor?To understand the Tin Bigha Corridor, you have to understand the complex history of enclaves. Historically, there were about 200 Indian and Bangladeshi enclaves—fragments of a country completely surrounded by another country—scattered along the West Bengal border. Dahagram and Angarpota make up a Bangladeshi enclave that is entirely surrounded by India's Cooch Behar district. After Bangladesh was established in 1971, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rehman signed a pact in 1974 to resolve the enclave problem. According to this agreement, Bangladesh retained Dahagram and Angarpota, while India retained South Berubari. Because the residents of Dahagram and Angarpota were cut off from mainland Bangladesh, India agreed to lease a small strip of land to Bangladesh in perpetuity. This specific 178 by 85 metres strip of land is known as the Tin Bigha Corridor. How does it work today?The Tin Bigha Corridor was officially leased to Bangladesh on June 26, 1992. When it first opened, inhabitants of the enclave could only move through the corridor to access their mainland for 6 hours a day. In July 1996, access was extended to 12 hours a day, but timely access to basic facilities remained a problem. Finally, on October 19, 2011, the corridor was opened 24 hours a day, bringing immense relief to the people of the Bangladeshi enclaves. Today, Dahagram–Angarpota is the only remaining enclave left after a massive land swap resolution in 2015. It is truly a surreal experience to see Indian Border Security Force (BSF) guards stationed along a road where Bangladeshi citizens actively walk through Indian territory to reach their homes.Thank you so much for following along on this massive trip from Odisha to Guwahati! Make sure to hit that like button, leave a comment about what you think of this crazy border, and subscribe for more travel adventures and geographical mysteries!