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KOKRAJHAR: Bhutan-India Friendship Association (BIFA) has deeply emphasized the need of promoting the cordial relationship between Bhutan and BTR for peaceful coexistence from across the border.
BIFA invited a group of media persons of Kokrajhar to Gelephu in Bhutan on Sunday to discuss the future course of action to strengthen the mutual relationship. The representatives of BIFA and Kokrajhar Press Club (KPC) shared their views and opinion on how to take the mutual relationship of the two neighbours forward in near future. BIFA emphasized on organizing friendly football and cricket match, cultural exchange, literary activities and get together programmes on regular intervals so that there would be people to people contact from across the nation. BIFA decided to invite BTR counterpart to Gelephu in Bhutan as early as possible.
The vice president of BIFA and former Bhutan Consul General in India and retired Joint Home Secretary of Bhutan Dasho Tsering Wangda who initiated the discussion said the Bhutan and India had been taking forward mutual relationship over the ages and there have been traditional and brotherhood relation between the Bhutanese and the Bodos in border areas of BTR people to people meeting from two sides but the COVID-19 pandemic pushed it back to some extend. He said BIFA could not continue to undertake the activities of the association during COVID-19 period but after improvement of situation Bhutan is looking forward to open its options for the tourists. He said Gelephu-Datgari, Sarpang-Saralpara, Nganglam-Lwkhibazar, Samdrup Jongkhar part in BTC region had been quite better in upholding the mutual and cordial relationship in border areas of the two sides in compared to West Bengal and other part. He also said the time had come to resume regular programmes in border areas to promote and strengthen the cordial relationship.
Wangda said BIFA had been trying its best to protect and preserve the mother nature and its resources for the future generations. He said the degradation of beautiful forests and subsequent encroachments was witnessed in Indian side which has negative impact on either sides. He said Bhutan had chalked out guidelines to protect the green mother earth and tourists would not allowed in restricted areas for the sake of protection of inner forest areas. He also briefed about the long term project of Gelephu Mindfulness City to expand Gelephu to make it an ideal destination for the tourists of the world. He thanked the government of India, Assam and BTR for sporting the continuation of strategic partnership between the two nations.
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