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India, Bangladesh end historic land dispute

August 1, 2015

After nearly seven decades, India and Bangladesh have officially swapped more than 150 pockets of land. The move follows a historic agreement signed earlier this year.

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Indien Bangladesch Fahne Flagge
Image: Getty Images/G. Crouch

One minute past the stroke of midnight on Saturday, India and Bangladesh ended a decades-long border dispute by swapping contested lands.

While an agreement to swap 162 islands of land - 111 in Bangladesh and 51 in India - was officially signed by Dhaka and New Delhi in June, the handover did not occur until Saturday.

The deal was originally agreed on in 1974 following Bangladesh's war for independence from Pakistan.

However, India's parliament did not approve the agreement until earlier this year.

The land swap affects around 50,000 stateless people, who have now received citizenship after nearly 70 years in limbo.

While most of the residents of the swapped lands celebrated their newfound citizenship, around 1,000 people living on the newly Bangladesh side have opted to keep their Indian citizenship.

India has said that they have until November to leave their homes and be resettled in the state of West Bengal.

India's External Affairs Ministry said in a statement on Friday that the day "marks the resolution of a complex issue that has lingered since independence" from British colonial rule in 1947, reported AP news agency.

ls/cmk (AFP, AP)