INDIA – Two counties arguing over ownership of an island, have had the dispute solved against their wishes!
Bangladesh and India have been in dispute for years over a tiny island south of the Hariabhanga river. The uninhabited territory is known as New Moore Island to the Indians and South Talpatti Island to the Bangladeshis. The island has disappeared underneath rising seas and has seemingly brought the argument to a moot point.
Satellite images have revealed the island to be under water, says the School of Oceanographic Studies in Calcutta. The same fate could fall onto other islands within the area say scientists.
The island has never been inhabited and has never appeared more than six feet above sea level. The dispute has prompted visits by Indian naval vessels and the deployment of a contingent from the country’s Border Security Force in the past.
“What these two countries could not achieve from years of talking has been resolved by global warming,” said Sugaa Hazra, director of the program at the school in Calcutta.
The island, located in the Bay of Bengal, began shrinking in the 1990s. It was believed to have been created over 40 years ago by a cyclone.
“There’s a lesson here that the world should learn while negotiating over territory,” Hazra said. “It’s not whether some country makes a gain. It’s whether we all collectively win or lose given the impact we’re seeing on the global environment.”
This disappearance also raises some new concerns for the country of Bangladesh. A U.N. panel has predicted that 17 percent of Bangladesh will disappear by 2050, displacing some 20 million people.
