For a child born in one of the Indian enclaves in Bangladesh, education is not among the easiest of things to acquire.
These enclave people are technically Indians and so, to get admission in a school on Bangladesh territory, they need to come up with a Bangladesh identity, which of course is fake.
There are very little schooling facilities available inside the enclaves. Non-governmental organisation (NGO) Brac operates small schools in many of these enclaves and these are the only schools that the enclave people have access to.
But each of these Brac schools can accommodate only 30 children at a time, that too for five years, giving them only the basic primary education.
For example, the Baskata enclave in Lalmonirhat district, one of the biggest Indian enclaves in Bangladesh, is home to more than 5,000 people. But there is only one Brac school to educate their children.
If a child, who finished one of these schools, wants to study further in a school beyond the limits of the enclave, then he or she or their parents will have to manage a fake Bangladeshi identity.
This correspondent met a young woman named Bilkis Aktar at the Balapukuri enclave in the same district. She is an undergrad student at Patgram Women’s College, located on Bangladesh territory.
“I had to use a fake identity while getting admission to school and college. It is humiliating,” she said.
Asked what had driven her to pursue higher education, despite the humiliation of carrying a fake identity, Bilkis said: “I want to educate my people [in the enclaves] after completing my graduation. We know that one day our movement will be successful and I will get a job. I hope the government will allot special quotas for us to change our fate.”
Nazrul Islam, 45, a farmer from the Baskata enclave, told this correspondent: “I have four sons and four daughters. Four of them are now studying. My eldest daughter is studying in college. I had to use my father-in-law’s address for their admission.
“I never wanted to manage admission for them with fake identities. But now things are going to change. Nobody will have to get admission in schools and colleges with fake identities,” said Nazrul.
He was clearly referring to the recent passage of the LBA-related constitutional amendment in the Indian parliament that paved the way for the long overdue Indo-Bangla enclave exchange.
According to a protocol signed in 2011 between Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her then Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh, nobody will be forced to leave their lands during the exchange.
This means that enclave people, who do not want to leave the place they have been living in for generations, will become citizens of the host country.
“We want to survive and for this, education is a must. I am an illiterate person but why will my children remain illiterate? The young generation will certainly change the lives and fates of the enclave people,” Nazrul said.
The fact that young men and women from these enclaves cannot legally get government jobs in Bangladesh also deter many from sending their children to educational institutions.
Selim Munna, secretary of the Balapukuri enclave society, said none of the enclave people of that area are graduates. Some have studied up to SSC and HSC.
He also said: “There are no job opportunities for the enclave people. Since most of us struggle to earn our bread and butter, thinking about education is tough, especially when you know that you will not get jobs no matter how far you study.”
Rafiqul Islam, a resident of the Latamari enclave, said they do not get government jobs because their fake identities get caught in the police verification.
This enclave is around 10km away from the Patgram upazila headquarters. Most of the 1,000 residents are farmers and have national ID cards with fake addresses.
“Most of us have national ID cards but we do not dare to apply for government jobs because we get disqualified in the police investigation,” he said.
As for elsewhere, there are only five graduates among the 5,000 people who live in the Baskata enclave.
Moksul Haque, resident of the Baskata enclave, said: “As new doors have opened, I think the government should do something for us so that our people can get jobs in both private and public services. Schools and colleges should be built in the enclaves.”
A woman named Shamsunnahar has a graduation degree and is now a teacher at a Brac school in Lalmonirhat.
“We should be given the opportunity to work in the primary education sector. But as I am an enclave-dweller, I am deprived of it,” she said.
However, with the breaking of the LBA ice, she thinks things are going to change once they are recognised as Bangladeshi citizens.