Theroads of Netajipalli in Barasat, North 24 Parganas district, make it look like any other settlement in rural West Bengal. But between the resonance of daily life and the sound of that familiar Bengali soap opera wafting from the TV set, there's a distinct 'Bangaal' touch to the language spoken here. The drawling accent with the stress on the 's' that one finds is the rule rather than the exception here is a unique feature of the Bengali spoken in Bangladesh, which is just a few kilometres from Netajipalli.

A BSF patrol at the India Bangladesh border A BSF patrol at the India Bangladesh border

Ranjit Kumar, NGO worker Ranjit Kumar, NGO worker

It's a common experience in several West Bengal districts. Over the years, lakhs of Bangladeshis have crossed over into Indian territory. While some have made their way into Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Delhi and Mumbai and even Pakistan and the Middle East, a crux of the immigrants have stayed on in West Bengal, a land that is ethnically closest to the one they have left behind.This migration, which started after the Liaquat-Nehru Pact (1950) and Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan in 1971, has continued. Some fled religious persecution, others because they were unable to keep up with the pressure created by the growing population of Bangladesh, while some wanted to escape environmental disasters such as frequent floods.

In Netajipalli, there is suspicion and fear on seeing strangers. "Who are you? Why are you here? Will you send us back? We don't want to go back." On realising they are not being sent back to the land they have left and a country that has forsaken them, residents begin to speak with candour. Barely in their 30s, Mukul Malik and wife Kamala Bibi left their two-acre plot in Khulna, Bangladesh, and came to West Bengal more than 12 years ago in search of a better livelihood.

A proliferation of madarsas signals an increasing Muslim population A proliferation of madarsas signals an increasing Muslim population

Malik, a cycle-van driver, earns Rs 20-25 a day, but life on this side of the border is better, he insists. "We did not have money to bribe the Border Security Force (BSF) or hire touts. We slipped across the border illegaly at night. We don't have ration cards, voter identity cards and other documents that will enable us to stay here. Getting fake documents requires a lot of money. We can't afford that," says Malik.

Decennial population growth in West Bengal Click here to Enlarge Decennial population growth in West Bengal

Several immigrants who are financially better off than Malik have, over time, become naturalised citizens of India. They have ration cards, educational certificates, voter identity cards and even passports. Touts on both sides of the border have been helping immigrants for decades now. "Earlier, immigrants had to pay Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 per person for each document. We now charge anywhere between Rs 5,000 to10,000 per document per person," says one tout.

Khadija Bibi, Bangladeshi illegal immigrant in West Bengal Khadija Bibi, Bangladeshi illegal immigrant in West Bengal

"I'm very lucky," says Ranjit Kumar Dutta, an NGO worker, who crossed over in 1992 after the demolition of the Babri Masjid. "There was a lot of tension and violence in Bangladesh then. I crossed the border with my family. We had Bangladeshi passports, which we destroyed after we reached West Bengal, and stayed on." While Dutta still visits Bangladesh, Mangal Chandra Bagchi, who also works at the same NGO, is scared to set foot across the border.

In the 20 years he has been here, he has not seen his brother and other relatives who live in Bangladesh. "I miss my birthplace and my brother but this is the sacrifice we have to make so that our next generation has a better future. My son is studying to be a doctor. Do you think this would have been possible in Bangladesh?" Bagchi wants to know, his tears running over.

A United Nations review says that Bangladesh should have had a population of 118 million in 1991, but the National Census reported only 108 million citizens. "According to Bangladesh's Census Report, the country had a population growth of over 2.4 per cent. It saw a decrease of more than six million voters within four years in the 1995 electoral roll. These missing voters and the increased number of voters during this period plus a disfranchised 20 lakh voters have infiltrated into India," says Dr Buddhadeb Ghosh, programme coordinator, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.

In 1951, Bangladesh had 22 per cent Hindus; today they're a mere 7 per cent. "This population has been forced to settle in parts of eastern India, particularly West Bengal," says Ghosh. Concern Universal, an international NGO working in 12 countries including Bangladesh, estimates that 50 Bangladeshis cross into India every day.

We are not scared to live in a non-Islamic country. We are safer and happier here than in Bangladesh. There's no place for fear.

"There is a virtual East Bengal in West Bengal. Immigrants, both Hindus and Muslims, have come from across the border and settled in districts which share borders with Bangladesh and have slowly penetrated into other districts," says historian Amalendu De. The national growth rate of population during 1951-61 was 21.6 per cent, but in West Bengal it was 32.8 per cent. "The higher increase in population in the border districts of West Bengal reflects the magnitude of cross-border migration from Bangladesh. Districts such as Malda, Murshidabad, Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas show a population growth rate that is higher than the overall population growth rate of the state," writes Jyoti Parimal Sarkar in her study Bangladeshi Migration to West Bengal: A Cause for Concern as a research scholar at Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi.

Hindus are not the only immigrants. Another strong indicator of infiltration from Bangladesh is the increase in the Muslim population in West Bengal. In 1951, the Hindu and Muslim population in West Bengal was 79.40 per cent Hindu and 18.63 per cent Muslim, which changed to 77.10 per cent Hindu and 21.55 per cent Muslim in 1981, and reached 72.90 per cent Hindu and 25.37 per cent Muslim in 2001. From North and South 24 Parganas, traversing Nadia, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Malda till North Dinajpur, a strong Muslim-dominated corridor has emerged and it could well be the kingmaker, playing a crucial role in the imminent change of political guard in the state.

The strength of the community has risen to 33.2 per cent in South 24 Parganas, 25 per cent in North 24 Parganas, 25.2 per cent in Nadia, 35.1 per cent in Birbhum, 63.7 per cent in Murshidabad, 49.7 per cent in Malda and 47.4 per cent in North Dinajpur, with a sizeable Muslim population in South Dinajpur, Howrah, Birbhum and Cooch Behar.

"A spurt of new mosques and the restoration of older ones implies an increase in the Muslim population. So does the growth in madarsas and the various sops given by the state government. This rise can't only be a result of a population boom. Bangladeshi Muslims have been settling in the state," says De. Khadija Bibi says, "We are not scared to live in a non-Islamic country. We are safer and happier here than in Bangladesh. There is no place for fear."

In 1992, Jyoti Basu, the late chief minister of West Bengal, had admitted in an article in the state CPI()M's official mouthpiece Ganashakti: "From 1979, even Muslims started coming into India from Bangladesh. Between 1977 and April 1992, 2,35,529 Bangladeshis had tried to cross over into India but had been sent back by the BSF. Of them, 68,472 were Hindus while 1,64,132 were Muslims."

Not surprising that most of the districts that are inhabited by immigrants rank lowest in the poverty index. "It is difficult to identify the social development and poverty index for the immigrants but most of them certainly belong to poorest among the poor," says Tapan Mitra, member, West Bengal State Planning Board. An Indian Statistical Institute study concluded that 14 out of the state's 18 districts are among the 100 most impoverished districts in the country.

The 2001 Census Report states that there are more than 30 lakh immigrants in West Bengal, of which 98 per cent are from Bangladesh. Illegal immigrants became a political issue in the 2006 state elections. "The immigrants were the de facto force in the decision-making of more than 50 per cent of the total 294 constituencies of the West Bengal Assembly," writes Sarkar.

The Left Front Government in West Bengal has historically been empathetic towards immigrants, extending political support and encouraging the migration. Ashok Biswas came to West Bengal in 1989 with his wife; his brothers followed suit between 1989 and 1993. Today they live in adjoining one-room houses in Barasat and sell fish for a living. "We all have relevant documents. The state government has been kind to us," says Biswas.

With the electoral process gaining momentum, next year's state elections could be a golden opportunity for both illegal immigrants and political parties. "Immigrants will use this opportunity to get Indian citizenship while political parties will woo them and leave no stone unturned to expand their votebank," says political commentator Dipankar Dasgupta.

For the illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, the grass may just be getting greener on the Indian side.