Mogolhat land port and immigration checkpost in Lalmonirhat Sadar have fallen into severe disrepair after remaining closed for 37 years, with key installations now reduced to rubble due to years of neglect.
Once an important trade gateway, the dilapidated immigration office buildings have collapsed to the ground, symbolising the prolonged abandonment of the port, according to local residents and traders.
The Mogolhat–Gitaldah–Dinhata route was once a busy corridor for cross-border trade, with regular import and export of goods and movement of passport-holding passengers, while the land port, built on 117 acres of land, served as a vital economic hub for the region.
Operations gradually came to a halt after a devastating flood in 1988 damaged part of the railway bridge over the Dharla River, severing rail connectivity between Bangladesh and India, although the immigration checkpost continued limited operations until 2002 before shutting down completely.
The prolonged closure has resulted in widespread job losses, with thousands of port workers, labourers and day labourers losing their livelihoods, forcing many once-solvent families into hardship.
Local people alleged that during the previous government’s tenure, several proposals were sent to the Ministry of Commerce to revive the port, but those initiatives remained confined to assurances, with no visible progress on the ground.
Although Burimari land port is operational in Lalmonirhat, it is located nearly 100 kilometres from the district town. Traders believe reopening Mogolhat would significantly ease access to trade with India’s seven northeastern states, as well as Nepal and Bhutan.
The importance of reviving the Mogolhat–Gitaldah route was also highlighted at a business meeting of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) traders in 2016, while the distance between Mogolhat and Gitaldah under Dinhata police station in India’s Cooch Behar district is only three kilometres.
Traders said the route could be restored if the one-kilometre-long damaged railway bridge over the Dharla River is repaired and immigration operations are reinstated.
They further said reopening the land port would boost employment, revitalise the local economy and enhance the region’s economic potential and strategic importance.
People of the area have urged the current government, as well as the next elected government, to take immediate steps to repair the damaged bridge and restart immigration and port operations to revive the once-thriving land port.
