Bangladesh and India are maintaining lockdown for more than one month to contain the spread of COVID-19. During this lockdown, new eyes have opened as we realize, the centralized healthcare system is not effective in the periphery area.
by Swadesh Roy
Before the corona pandemic, we had thought about many issues between Bangladesh and North-East India. Over the last eleven years, the governments of Bangladesh and India have been trying settling some issues, and they have come up with many issues between Bangladesh and North-East India. At the beginning of Sheikh Hasina’s second term regime in 2009, both the governments have emphasized the internal security in the North-East border belt of Bangladesh and the whole seven sisters. By the iron hand of Sheikh Hasina within very short, the outlaw groups of North-East India displaced their hiding shelter from Bangladesh to India and eventually got bound to surrender to the Indian government. So, a peaceful North-East India is a gift to India from Sheikh Hasina, said by the common people of India.
After settling the security issue, obviously economic and infrastructure issues came ahead. The businessmen of the two countries have started their survey on how they can go forward. In the meantime, many of the industrialist houses of Bangladesh already have entered in the North-East market with their agro-based and construction commodities and they are enjoying good business too. Meanwhile, Bangladesh and India have settled their long time land boundary dispute. It was also enthusiastic for the people of North-East India and their neighbor Bangladeshi border belt people. The peaceful settlement of the land boundary dispute also helped to open up the border belt economy peacefully. The country which enjoys such a long land border in the world must have to maintain the border economy for stopping smuggling. The land border of Bangladesh and India is the fifth-longest border in the world. So, like Mexico and American border, Kazakhstan and Russia, Chile and Argentina, Bangladesh and Indian land border is also the route of smuggling goods for the two neighboring countries’ smugglers. It is proven that only the border economy can be a remedy against the border smuggling. On this point, two countries have started to open up many land routes for legal business in the border areas, even granted a program for opening border market. It is, no doubt, a good initiative. Besides, both the countries are gradually advancing to open up many big windows, like opening railway service, highway, natural resource-related industries, hydraulic power plant, and gas-based power plant in joint-venture. Many of the economists in India, Bangladesh and other economic organizations of the world also expressed their views that if Bangladesh and North-East India become successful to open up this big window, the region will be one of the game-changers in the South Asian economy.
Therefore, we can sum up, both the governments have made this area peaceful first and settled some long pending issues. Then, they are gradually advancing for opening a new economic zone which will be a unique economic zone and easily connected with Eastern Asia. Precisely, it is one kind of economic gateway for Bangladesh and India for maintaining the connection with Eastern Asia. This future economy certainly is one of the main goals of India and Bangladesh regarding North-East Indian soil.
On the contrary, corona pandemic has changed the mode of development thinking in this area in the meantime. Bangladesh and India are maintaining lockdown for more than one month to contain the spread of COVID-19. During this lockdown, new eyes have opened as we realize, the centralized healthcare system is not effective in the periphery area. Beside that these eyes also say, the healthcare system of North-East India and the North-East border of Bangladesh is not only insufficient but also highly poor. With this, it can be said, two countries have thought about many economic game-changer balls in the last eleven years, but they never thought about health issues. It is a matter of fact that comparing the size of the economy and military power, the overall healthcare system is negligible in both of the countries. In these two countries, India is manufacturing fighter jet, fighter ships, missiles even atomic bombs. Simultaneously, another country Bangladesh is purchasing fighter jet Mig-29 and Submarines. On the other hand, in India and Bangladesh, they have no workable health insurance. Even, overall healthcare system is absolutely helpless for fighting any epidemic and pandemic.
However, it is not fair losing time only to criticize the past policies. Rather, it is better to make a correct future plan, learning from the current dangerous situation. But truly, it is very early for planning anything before corona math, for we are now fighting against COVID-19 for saving lives. Now, obviously taking our present infrastructure, we have to try our best for saving people’s lives. By the way, this black time will be over but it has taught us a big lesson. We have thought about the economy and defense of the country for our people but didn’t think about the healthcare system with that much priority. Corona attack has taught us that without saving life, there is no value of economic development and raising defense power.
After this corona math, Bangladesh and India obviously will think about the healthcare jointly, because, corona lockdown has made us realize that the centralized healthcare is meaningless at the time of lockdown and in other crisis periods. So, it is better to decentralize the healthcare infrastructure. That’s why both the countries should think jointly regarding the healthcare of the border areas.
Some Bangladeshi districts are more connected with North-East India, simultaneously, with North-East border belt too. After overcoming corona attack, India and Bangladesh need to set up good medical education institutes, medical management institutes, and healthcare institutes in these border-belt areas. Some institutes could be built up in Bangladesh and some others in North-East India according to the ease of communication where both countries’ people can go. We have to keep in mind, this border belt healthcare is more necessary than the border economy now.
Swadesh Roy, Senior Journalist, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is a highest state award winning journalist and can be reached at swadeshroy@gmail.com
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