Guwahati/Agartala: The Bangladeshi Independence Day celebrated in Assam and Tripura on Sunday with numerous functions and events in the two Indian states that share border with the neighbouring country.
Bangladesh’s Assistant High Commissions in Guwahati and Agartala organised a series of programmes to observe the day.
Artistes, including renowned singers from both Bangladesh and India, performed in the functions.
Discussions were held highlighting the significance of Bangladesh Independence Day and National Day.
Bangladesh celebrates its Independence Day on March 26 — which is also a national holiday.
The day commemorates Bangladesh’s declaration of Independence from Pakistan in the early hours of March 25, 1971.
On the occasion, troops of the Border Security Force exchanged sweets and greetings with Border Guards Bangladesh in the border outposts along the border between the two neighbouring countries.
Days after the Pakistani forces unleashed attacks across Bangladesh, East Pakistan’s leaders vowed to win their Independence on March 26, 1971.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman then launched a guerilla war against the then Pakistani rulers.
The Liberation War later turned into a full-scale India-Pakistan War, leading to the surrender of 93,000 Pakistani soldiers in Dhaka on December 16, 1971.
India was the first country to recognise Bangladesh as a sovereign nation.
According to Bangladeshi freedom fighters and experts, Pakistani forces, during the 9 months of the Liberation War (March 26 to December 16, 1971), massacred over 3 million Bengali-speaking people, including children, and raped over 6 lakh women.
Over 1 crore families were displaced from their ancestral homes and lands during that period.
(IANS)
