Government has said that an amendment to the Constitution is being drafted to enable the exchange of 111 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh and 51 Bangladeshi enclaves in the Indian territory.

In a letter to CPI leader Prabodh Panda, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said, government is committed to the earliest implementation of the Protocol and Land Boundary Agreement between the two countries that would result in exchange of enclaves.

Mr. Krishna's letter came after Mr. Panda raised the issue in Lok Sabha earlier this month asking the government to take urgent steps to exchange the enclaves and provide much-needed relief to thousands of people living in these areas.

AIR correspondent reports, the Protocol and the Agreement, signed during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Bangladesh in September last year, are subject to ratification by both governments.

The Indian enclaves in Bangladesh are spread over 17,149 acres of land, while Bangla enclaves in India are located in 7,110 acres.

The problem had been persisting since Independence and not been resolved even after the 1974 Indira-Mujib Agreement or during the transfer of Teen Bigha.