Residents of Susta in West Nawalparasi have confronted and turned back Indian security personnel who entered Nepali territory carrying weapons.
According to Adam Hussain, ward chairman of Susta Rural Municipality Ward No. 5, five armed Indian security personnel entered Nepali territory east of the Armed Police Force (APF) camp around 7 a.m. on Friday.
Hussain said that the Indian security personnel, who had entered Nepal by crossing a culvert built over a water channel in Tutanwa near the Indian border, were confronted by local Nepalis working in their fields and forced to return to India.
“After seeing Indian security personnel come with weapons, residents of Susta who were working in the fields confronted them and asked by whose permission they had entered Nepali land. They then returned to India,” Hussain said.
A brief dispute occurred between the Indian security personnel and the locals during the incident.
The water channel in Tutanwa divides the area into two sides. Residents of Susta cultivate the land on the near side of the channel, while India has prohibited cultivation on the land across the channel, claiming it to be disputed territory. The forested Nepali land across the channel has been turned by Indian farmers into a grazing area for buffaloes.
According to local resident Munsi Kumar Harijan, Nepalis are barred from crossing the stream to reach Tutanwa even though it is their own land. However, Indian security personnel occasionally enter Nepali territory carrying weapons.
While the entry of armed Indian security personnel into Nepali territory had ceased for some time, it has recently resumed. Just a few days ago, Indian security personnel arrived and halted the construction of an embankment being built by Nepal to prevent erosion by the Narayani River.
Construction of the embankment has been underway since February along a one-kilometer stretch. Although a contract has also been awarded for an additional 132-meter extension to the east, construction has not been able to proceed due to obstruction by Indian security personnel.
