Dhaka stakes claim over submerged island in Bengal bay

DHAKA - Bangladesh has re-asserted its claim over an island, that has submerged in the Bay of Bengal, to bolster its case in a maritime boundary dispute with India.

Dhaka says South Talpatti, which India calls New Moore island, was awarded to the erstwhile East Pakistan by the British in 1947.

Although the island went under water, Dhaka, that has just completed a seismic survey, says it will form the basis of the maritime boundary with India.

Dhaka is in dispute with India and eastern neighbour Myanmar and the three have taken their cases to a UN body for arbitration.

The boundary dispute has gained importance with prospects of hydro carbon exploration in the upper reaches of the bay.

The disputes have caused minor stand-offs and much diplomatic activity. But the three nations are committed to resolving them through talks.

“Bangladesh, according to the map prepared on the basis of the Radcliff Award, asserts its sovereignty over South Talpatti, a submerged island in the eastern side of the mid-channel of the bordering river of Hariabhanga,” Foreign Secretary Mohamed Mijarul Quayes said Saturday.

He was commenting on media reports on the uninhabited tiny island, which disappeared beneath the waves due to rising sea level and erosion, New Age reported Sunday.