Stern direction to BSF troops that no infiltration should take place along India-Pak IB: DG

• Drone penetrating radars being used in Jammu to find, dismantle under-ground tunnels

STATE TIMES NEWS

Jodhpur: BSF Director General (DG) Daljit Singh Chawdhary said on Friday that a “stern direction” has been given to Border Security Force troops that “no infiltration should take place” along the 2,289 km long India-Pakistan international border (IB) guarded by it on the country’s western flank running along the states of Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Speaking at a press conference on the occasion of the 60th Raising Day of the force, the DG said that in Kashmir, the BSF works under the command of the Army to secure the Line of Control (LoC).
About 2.65 lakh strength force was raised on December 1, 1965. It is primarily tasked to guard more than 6,300 kms of Indian fronts with Pakistan and Bangladesh apart from rendering a variety of duties in the internal security domain of the country.
An electronic surveillance of vulnerable patches is being undertaken along the Pakistan and Bangladesh borders where a total of 635 vulnerable patches, covering 484 kms of the two IBs are being covered, as per the BSF, he said.
Chawdhary said there was “very little” area on the India-Pakistan front that was not fenced.
“We are using drone penetrating radars in Jammu and Punjab border areas to find and dismantle under-ground tunnels that are used by terrorists to infiltrate into India from Pakistan,” he added.
The DG said there was not an “exact estimate” about the number of infiltration attempts getting successful from the Pakistan border but the force undertakes “all necessary” measures to stop such crossings of terrorists.
He said illegal entry of drones from Pakistan into the border areas of India was a “big challenge” but while these unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flights have gone up, the volume of drugs smuggled from this border had gone down.
As per data recorded by the BSF, more than 257 drones have been seized by the force this year as compared to more than 110 recovered last year.
He said the Border Security Force has initiated a special electronic surveillance project to secure over 600 “vulnerable patches” along the India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh borders, covering areas where physical fencing is not feasible, the force chief said on Friday.
He said said approximately 800 km of the 4,069 km India-Bangladesh border remains unfenced due to rivers and other geographical challenges.
Last year in December during the BSF Raising Day at Hazaribag in Jharkhand, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said that India’s two most important borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh will be completely secured in the next two years.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to officiate as the chief guest of the Raising Day parade at a BSF camp here, about 340 kms from state capital Jaipur, on December 8.
Answering a question about the current situation of fencing along the two borders, the DG said, “Hardly about 800 kms of the India-Bangladesh border remains unfenced…this is that area were it is not feasible to erect a fence, like the riverine areas.”
However, efforts are underway to set up an electronic surveillance and vulnerability project consisting of infra red sensors and alarms to dominate vulnerable patches on this IB, the DG said.
The force, along the Bangladesh front, is also undertaking a “detailed vulnerability mapping to strengthen surveillance by deploying additional manpower, special surveillance equipments and vehicles, Chawdhary said.
For the western front with Pakistan, the DG said the force was planning to erect a “new design fence” and CCTV, PTZ (pan tilt zoom) and bullet cameras have been installed in vulnerable areas for better surveillance of this front.
Similarly, this year the force has seized over 432 kg of drugs at this front as compared to 895 kgs recovered last year.
Chawdhary said BSF was on “continuous alert” along the Bangladesh border post the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government in that country in August.
The force was “in touch” with its Bangladeshi counterpart BGB and they “always responded” to them post these latest developments in the neighbouring country, he said.
Issues are immediately sorted out, he said pointing out to the good working relations between the forces of the two countries.
“There has been no unnecessary movement or encroachment on this border. Only people with valid visa are being allowed to cross over to India. We have been able to stop illegal infiltration from this area (Bangladesh border) ,” he said.
BSF data said over 172 gold and 178 kg silver was seized along the India-Bangladesh border this year.