Lions share of travel tax pocketed at land port
Nexus at Burimari
Rafique Sarker back from Burimari, Lalmonirhat
Rangpur: Huge amounts from travel taxes collected at Burimari land port every day is being misappropriated allegedly by sections of immigration police, BDR and customs officials, depriving the state exchequer. Only around one fourth of the travel taxe collected every day is being deposited to the exchequer and the rest goes to pockets of the unscrupuloyus officials and immigration police, sources claimed. According to immigration rules, a traveler from Bangladesh to India or any other South Asian country is to pay Tk 500 as travel tax. Immigration police at the land port realise the tax from travelers. But in most cases they do not record it, it is alleged. Some middlemen act as brokers. They advice travelers not deposit the tax money with banks. They suggest travelers to pay it in cash to immigration police to evade "unnecessary harassment". Those who pay are subjected to harassment, it is alleged. Shahajahan Babu, an export-import businessman in Rangpur alleged that travelers who deposit travel tax with banks face hassle and harassment by immigration police. Babon Proshad, another import and exporter in the district also alleged that immigration police kept him waiting for hours at an office at the port last month showing filmy reasons. The main cause of the harassment was that he deposited the tax money witb a bank, he claimed. Besides being deprived of revenue, the government is also being misled due to this corruption travelers and sources among officials said. The number of travelers going to India, Bhutan and Nepal through Burimari land port has increased five times in last four years but the government is not fully aware of it, a high official at Rangpur DBR Sector Command told this correspondent seeking unanimity. This is also thwarting tight border vigilance by BDR. "As the immigration police at the port do not keep correct records, many of the wanted criminals are easily crossing the border to India," the BDR official said. It was gathered from sources at Burimari land port that as per records, 1045 Bangladeshi travelers going to India paid travel tax last month. But the number of travelers from Bangladesh recorded with the Chegrabandha immigration check post in India in the same month was 3280. Names of 2255 travelers from Bangladesh to India were not recorded at Burimari immigration check post.
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