A total of 864.482 km of the 4,096.7 km-long border between India and Bangladesh remains unfenced, the Union government told Parliament on Tuesday.

Out of the total, 174.514 km of the border was a “non-feasible” gap, said Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai in a written response to a query raised by Trinamool Congress MP Sajda Ahmed in the Lok Sabha.

Rai added that 3,232.218 km of the 4,096.7 km-long border between the two countries had already been fenced.

A row broke out on January 12 after Bangladesh accused India of trying to construct fences along the border at five places in violation of a bilateral agreement.

Hours later, the Bangladeshi foreign ministry summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma to discuss concerns about border tensions.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs on January 13 summoned Bangladesh Deputy High Commissioner Nural Islam and conveyed that New Delhi had followed all protocols and agreements with Dhaka regarding “security measures at the border”.

On Tuesday, Rai told Lok Sabha that several challenges, including problems regarding land acquisition, objections from the Border Guard Bangladesh, limited working seasons and difficult terrain, delayed the completion of the fencing

“Fencing helps in ensuring a crime-free border by effectively addressing the challenges of cross-border criminal activities, smuggling, movement of criminals and trafficking,” Rai claimed.

The minister said that India observed all protocols and agreements between the two governments, adding that it expected Bangladesh to also honour existing pacts and maintain a cooperative approach to combat cross-border crimes.

Diplomatic ties between New Delhi and Dhaka have been strained since former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India on August 5 amid widespread, student-led protests against her Awami League government. She had been the prime minister of Bangladesh for 16 years.

Nobel laureate economist Muhammad Yunus took over as the head of Bangladesh’s interim government on August 8.

A commission formed by the interim government recently alleged India’s involvement in enforced disappearances during Hasina’s rule.

Also read: The human and economic costs of the militarised India-Bangladesh border