Decline in infiltration bids on Indo-Bangladesh, Indo-Pak borders during 2008-2010 (till June)

From The Andhra News

The Government on Wednesday said there has been a decline in infiltrations at the Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Pakistan borders, a devopment observed by the number of apprehended infiltrators on these borders during 2008 to 2010 (till June).

New Delhi, July 28 : The Government on Wednesday said there has been a decline in infiltrations at the Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Pakistan borders, a devopment observed by the number of apprehended infiltrators on these borders during 2008 to 2010 (till June).

In a written reply to a question, Minister of State for Home Affairs M.Ramachandran stated that there are no significant incidences of infiltration on Indo-Nepal, Indo-Bhutan,Indo-Myanmar and Indo-China borders. Similarly, there are no reports to indicate the infiltration bids from sea into the coastal areas. Although Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Pakistan borders are prone to infiltration, number of apprehended infiltrators on these borders during the years 2008, 2009 and 2010 (upto June) indicate a decline as shown below :

Year No.of persons apprehended for infiltration Total Indo-Pak border Indo-Bangladesh border

2008 136 3175 3311

2009 83 2460 2543

2010 64 939 1003 (upto June)

Details of infiltrators apprehended/killed and number of casualties of Border Security Force personnel during the year 2009 and 2010 on Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Pakistan borders are as under :

Year Indo-Pakistan border Indo-Bangladesh border Infiltrators Infiltrators Casualities of Infiltrators Infiltrators Casualities apprehended killed BSF personnel apprehended killed of BSF personnel in action in action 2009 83 11 11 2460 16 2 010(Upto 64 11 2 939 13 1 uly 15)

Regarding the sea borders, as per the information available, during the year 2009-10, a total of 166 fishing boats of Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Myanmar have been apprehended along with 959 crew, whilst fishing in Indian waters, for violation under Maritime Zone of India Nationality-wise details of infiltrators apprehended during 2010 are indicated below :

Indo Pakistan border (Nos.) Indo Bangladesh border (Nos.) Indians Bangladeshis Pakistanis others Total Indians Bangladeshis others Total010 --- 05 58 01 64 117 806 16 939 Uptouly 15)

There are no confirmed reports suggesting that infiltrators have created current disturbance in Srinagar.

The minister stated that the Government has adopted a multi-pronged approach to contain cross-border infiltration which, inter-alia, includes round the clock surveillance and patrolling on the borders and establishment of observation posts; construction of border fencing and flood lighting; introduction of modern and hi-tech surveillance equipment; upgradation of intelligence set up and coordination with the State Governments and concerned intelligence agencies.

The steps, inter-alia, been taken by the Government for strengthening the coastal security apparatus and to check infiltration from the sea include--(i) The Indian Coast Guard has been additionally designated as the authority responsible for coastal security in territorial waters, including areas to be patrolled by the Coastal Police, (ii) Enhancement of patrolling and surveillance in coastal areas by Coastal Police,the Coast Guard, Customs and the Indian Navy.(iii) Setting up of 12 additional Coast Guard Stations.

ANI

Erosion posing security threat along border

From The Assam TribuneR Dutta Choudhury
 GUWAHATI, July 29 – For years, flood and erosion caused miseries to thousands of people of Assam and now the problems posed a threat to the security of the nation as the border roads and fencing in some parts are under severe threat. If immediate steps are not taken, there is every possibility of some portions of the international border becoming vulnerable in the days to come.
Border Security Force (BSF) sources told The Assam Tribune that severe erosion and floods seriously affected border management and if immediate steps are not taken to deal at least with erosion, there is every possibility of border roads and fencing eroding away in parts of Dhubri district.
Sources revealed that due to high floods and erosion, the personnel of the border guarding force are forced to shift some of their border outposts (BOPs) located in the vulnerable stretches of the international border with Bangladesh. Sources said that already the BOPs at Mahamaya Char, Mantrichar, Masalabari, Haldiaganj, Sisumara etc in Dhubri sector have been shifted due to high floods and erosion and the BOPs are now operating from boats. This definitely affected the functioning of the personnel of the border guarding force in maintaining a close vigil along the international border.
Sources said that severe erosion has posed a serious threat to the border roads and fencing, particularly in parts of Mankachar are and if immediate steps are not taken to deal with the problem, there is every possibility of a portion of fencing and border road getting eroded. If the fencing and road are washed away , it will adversely affect bordermanagement as the area will become totally open. The entire stretch of the internationalborder is still not fenced and the BSF is forced to deploy additional personnel in the areas, which are still not fenced. If a portion of the fencing is washed away, this will further complicate the situation as extra precaution will have to be taken to keep watch on that area, sources pointed out.
The erosion of the border roads will also restrict the movement of the troops and this, in turn, will make the border more vulnerable. The people living in the international border areas also use the border roads and they will also face serious problems if the road is eroded. The BSF has already taken up the issue with the Government on several occasions and the force is hoping that the Government would take serious note of the situation and take immediate steps to check erosion by the river Brahmaputra. “Huge amounts of money was spent on construction of the border roads and fencing and if those cannot be protected, it will result in colossal waste of national exchequer”, sources pointed out.
Sources said that shifting of the BOPs has affected patrolling. Though regular river patrolling is being carried out, it is difficult to keep a close watch on the entire stretch of the riverine border when the Brahmaputra river is in full spate. It is also learnt that the project to bring in floating BOPs to guard the riverine international border has been abandoned as of now as the water level of the Brahmaputra comes down during the dry season.

Kidnapped Indian likely to be released today

From SentinelAssam

Staff Correspondent  SHILLONG, July 29: Bangladeshi people kidnapped Indian villager Daminy Dkhar from a paddy field in Rongkhun village in Jaintia Hills, said to be an area under “adverse possession” of India, out of vengeance.  Even as the BSF has extracted an assurance that Dkhar would be released on Friday, Bangladeshi people managed to enter the area “under adverse possession” that is well under the control of the Indian frontier forces.  Sources said Dkhar was kept in the custody of the Bangladesh Police after the BDR rescued the Indian villager from the clutches of the Bangladeshi miscreants. Bangladeshi civilians are known for their desperate act on many counts. They vented their anger on the vulnerable ones when Indian villagers held up a number of Bangladeshi-owned cows that entered their village.  The BSF confirmed that Dkhar was taken by Bangladeshis from the “land under India’s possession”.  BSF spokesman Ravi Gandhi said, “Our (BSF) field officers contacted their counterparts and we expect that Dkhar will be released by Friday.”  Admitting that Bangladeshi miscreants were well inside the disputed land under India’s possession, Gandhi said unwarranted acts by Bangladeshi civilians was a cause for concern, especially when the BDR had restrained themselves from any misadventure in the past one month.  Ronkhun under Rangtilla border outpost (BOP) is one area where the BDR had resorted to unprovoked firing in the recent past. Sources in Rongkhun village said, “We are anxious to know about Dkhar. Even agricultural activities have come to a standstill (after Dkhar’s kidnapping)”.

Fugitive Ulfa rebel held in Meghalaya

From The Times of IndiaTNN, Jul 29, 2010, 12.11am IST

Article

Comments

Tags:west garo hills|ulfa|meghalaya

GUWAHATI: BSF personnel on Wednesday nabbed an Ulfa rebel in West Garo Hills of Meghalaya while he was trying to infiltrate into India from Bangladesh.

A BSF spokesman said the apprehended militant, Colombus Marak of Ulfa's 109 battalion, had escaped from Tura jail in 2008. "Colombus underwent training in Bhutan in 2003 after which he was sent to operate in the Garo Hills. He was engaged in large scale extortion in the Jorabat area along the Assam-Meghalaya boundary," he added.

Earlier, Marak was arrested by Meghalaya Police and was lodged in Tura jail. After 13 days, he escaped from prison along with other inmates in a daring jailbreak. Since then, he was at large, said the spokesman.

In West Garo Hills, BSF personnel of Mahendraganj border outpost also apprehended an Ulfa linkman, Golzim A Sangma. On Tuesday, BSF also seized fake Indian currency notes in a special operation in the Boreralga ghat area of Dhubri district from an Indian national. The BSF spokesman said fake notes worth Rs 6,000 and genuine currency worth Rs 24,000 and a cellphone were found in the possession of the accused identified as Mandal Seikh of South Salmara.

"On Monday, we had apprehended an Indian national near Balajan More in the district along with fake currency worth Rs 25, 500. The person has been identified as Nazhul Haque Sarkar (22) of Golakganj. We have handed both the persons along with the seized items to the department concerned," the BSF spokesman said.

BSF jawans of Assam and Meghalaya Frontier have also seized 36 cattleheads and contraband items meant for smuggling out to Bangladesh in the state's Dhubri district and hilly areas of Meghalaya. "These items were being smuggled out to Bangladesh. The estimated cost of the seized items is worth Rs 6, 97,000 and they have been handed over to the concerned department," he added.

Abducted Meghalaya farmer in Bangla police custody

From The Assam Tribune
 Shillong, July 29 (IANS): The Border Security Force (BSF) today said it was in touch with Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) officials for the safe release of an Indian farmer from Meghalaya who was abducted by Bangladeshi nationals.

On Wednesday, Bangladeshi nationals abducted Demi Dhar, 21, an Indian farmer from Rongkhum, an 'adverse possession' or disputed area along the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya's Jaintia Hills district, says the BSF. Sources in Dhar's Amlympiang village said the Bangladesh nationals later handed him over to the BDR while accusing him of illegal intrusion into Bangladesh. Dhar, the grandson of a land owner, is in the custody ofBangladesh police in Sylhet district.

Rongkhum is 25 km east of Pyrdiwah village, which was in 2001 occupied for days by the BDR - which claimed it was part of Bangladesh - before they were forced to retreat.

"We are keeping in touch with our Bangladesh counterparts for an early release of the kidnapped Indian farmer," BSF Inspector General RC Saxena told IANS.

Villagers have urged BSF officials to put pressure on the BDR. "We have asked the BSF to ensure the immediate release of Dhar as he was detained illegally," Amlympiang village headman Peace Dhar told IANS on telephone.

Meghalaya, which shares a 443-km border with Bangladesh, has witnessed several incidents of "unprovoked firing" by the BDR June 15.

Adverse possession areas were created when the erstwhile East Pakistan - present dayBangladesh - and India demarcated the international boundary in the mid-1960s. There are 551.8 acres of Bangladeshi land in India's possession, while 226.81 acres of Indian land is in Bangladesh's possession.

There are about 11 such areas in Meghalaya, with several of them being in the Jaintia Hills and East Khasi Hills district bordering Bangladesh.

On June 24, the BSF and BDR agreed to exercise "utmost restraint" in areas of dispute along the international border and to leave the issue of settlement of areas underadverse possession to the joint working group of both nations.

JCT Academy prevail over BSF

From PunjabNewsline

      

Satinder Bains

Thursday, 26 July 2007

PHAGWARA: A goal at the closing stages of the game helped  Jagatjit Cotton Textile Academy of Phagwara to prevail over a fighting Border Security Force of Jalandhar by 2-1 in the 21st Punjab State Super Football League, being sponsored by NRI Shiv Lal Pabbi at the Guru Nanak College Ground in  Phagwara.

Both sides were evenly matched. However, it was JCT Academy which scored the first goal.  Balwant Singh opened the account for JCT Academy  with a powerful shot in the 41st minute. Launching a counter-attack,. Border Security Force neutralised the lead through Santosh Kujur who dribbled his way into the box before scoring in the 48th minute.

With teams sharing two goals, the match became an interesting affair. JCT Academy scored the match-winner through the boots of Jagpreet Singh in the 88th minute.

It was the second victory for JCT Academy. Out of three matches they have played so far, JCT Academy have lost one.

 JCT Academy's Jagpreet Singh (60th minute) and BSF's Gurminder Singh (54th) and PH Boy Singh (67th) were involved in rough play and referee Balwinder Singh flashed yellow cards against these players for committing deliberate fouls.  

Teams: JCT Academy:  Rajinder, Amandeep (Sr.) Sarabjit Singh, Chandandeep Singh, Surjit Singh, Gursewak Singh (Dilshad Ahmed 65), Jagpreet Singh, Amandeep (Jr),-Amandeep Bains, Lahlimathara Mahlima (H.Lalnunzira 54'), Balwant Singh.

BSF:   Machinder Singh, Tapan Bhattacharya, Amarjit Singh Gurminder Singh, PB Ekka, Samrat Choudhary(Sandeep Kumar 46'), Sarabjit Singh, PH Boy Singh (Kamal Kishore 79'), Santosh Kujur Balraj Singh, Santosh Sethi (Banti Singh 49')

Referee  : Balwinder Singh.
Asst. Referees  :       Harvindr Pal Singh & Kulwinder Singh
Fourth Official :       Pawan Kumar
Match Commissioner:     Deepak Kumar ( Former International footballer).

Rain forces BSF to patrol in boats

From The Times of India

Ajay Parmar, TNN, Jul 30, 2010, 12.46am IST

Article

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Tags:rajasthan frontier|manmohan singh|jodhpur|bsf

JODHPUR: The recent spell of heavy rain in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana has left certain regions of Ganganagar, flooded. With four to five feet water logged in the border areas, five border posts in the sector are submerged, forcing the BSF to patrol the Indo-Pak border areas at Anoopgarh in boats.


The heavy rain in Punjab and Haryana has led to flooding of the Ghagghar river, which is a seasonal river and passes through Ganganagar sector. The water carried by this river has spread around five posts of the BSF in the sector which are low lying and almost a week after the flood water was flown into this area, the situation has not improved much.


DIG R C Dhyani (Rajasthan Frontier) said whenever there is a heavy rain in the neighbouring states, this river overflows and its water submerges border outposts. "This compels us to patrol in boats. We cannot take any chances, least some intruder may take advantage of this situation,'' he said.


Presently, huge quantity of water is logged around these posts which has rich deposits of gypsum under the earth. This deposit seal the earth's crust and the water remain stagnant for longer period until it is fully absorbed by the land.


"About 5 km of area, where these posts are located, is submerged under water. This is not the first time that we are experiencing this kind of unusual occurrence in the desert," said Dhyani. The BSF is always prepared for such flood like situation and the task of patrolling on the border is not allowed to suffer.


Recently, in a bid to prevent floods in the Ghagghar river in future, Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has urged prime minister Manmohan Singh to help construct check dams and embankments under a national project. 

'Six infiltration attempts inside 15 days in Jammu':ed

From Zeenews.com


New Delhi: Almost six infiltration attempts by militants have been foiled by the BSF in the last fortnight along the international border at Jammu, a top officer said today. 

"We have foiled almost six infiltration attempts in the last fifteen days along the international border. We have increased the vigil to thwart any such attempt," Inspector General Border Security Force (BSF) Siddharth Chhatopadhaya told reporters on the sidelines of an internal security conference here. 


Chhatopadhaya said the BSF has lodged official protests with the Pakistan Rangers following the incidents. ............................................

PTI 

BSF ‘humane’ plea to push back boys rejected

From The Telegraph

OUR CORRESPONDENT

The Bangladeshi boys being taken to the juvenile justice board in Raiganj on Monday. Picture by Nantu Dey Raiganj, July 26: The state juvenile justice board here today rejected a BSF plea to push back three Bangladeshi minors, saying that it did not have any “jurisdiction” on the matter. The plea comes three days after the border guards caught the boys along with two others in Songaon. The BSF had submitted an application to the board which has an office in Karnajora to grant them permission to push back the three “on humanitarian grounds”. The three minor boys, two of them aged 10 and another eight, have been kept at Suryodaya, a government home in Raiganj. Jashwant Singh, the deputy inspector-general of the BSF here, said the five boys were picked up on last Friday evening. The jawans patrolling at Songaon, about 25km from here, found their movement inside Indian territory suspicious. “Two of the five were above 18 years and they were produced in court after they were handed over to the police. Since we realised that the three others were minors, we waited till Monday for the juvenile justice board office to open. We are trying our best to talk to our counterparts in Bangladesh so that the minor boys can be returned home,” Singh added. Inspector in-charge of Raiganj police station Sujit Ghosh said the two others — Mohammad Paria, 22, and Mohammad Mutul Rehman, 20 — had been sent to judicial custody. The BSF had alleged that all of them were guilty of cutting the border fencing and entering India, Ghosh said. One of the minor boys said they were all residents of Meenapur village in Thakurgaon district of Bangladesh. “Around 10 or 15 of us were fishing in a pond adjacent to the border on Friday evening. We had strayed close to the fence in search of a better catch. We were sitting and catching fish and a BSF jawan had been watching us. Suddenly he came and caught the five of us and handed us over to the police,” he recounted. The minor boy said he was a student of Class III in a primary school and missed his English test today. The three minors were taken to the office of the juvenile justice board’s office on Suryodaya’s campus around 4pm today. Sikha Moitra, a member of three-member board, said: “The BSF’s appeal could not be taken up as the board does not have the jurisdiction on these matter. However, we are treating this as a special case and the minors will be produced before us on August 5.”

Fencing delay hits BSF job:ed

From The Telegraph E.M. JOSE Shillong,: The delay in carrying out fencing along the 135km international border in Jaintia Hills and Khasi hills since 2007 has created hurdles for the BSF to carry out its task of effective border policing in these areas. The Meghalaya government is yet to give its nod to the construction of border fencing because of the opposition from several NGOs. A senior BSF police official told The Telegraph today that as the fencing has stopped since a few years ago in Khasi hills-Jaintia Hills, the BSF has not been able to man the border effectively. According to the BSF, border fencing will minimise transborder crimes, including smuggling. The BSF claimed that it had written to the state government several times on the need to resume the fencing but in vain. The state government had to keep in abeyance border fencing in several areas in Khasi-Jaintia Hills because of the opposition from pressure groups under the banner Co-ordination Committee on International Border..................................

250 Detonators seized from Indo-Bangla border:ed

From The Times of India

Press Trust Of India
Balurghat (WB), July 27, 2010

One person was arrested from near the Indo-Bangladesh border in South Dinajpur, from whom 250 detonators were seized, police said on Tuesday. Illias Sheikh was caught by the BSF from Haripukur village on Monday and was produced at a local court on Tuesday after being handed over to the police.

He has been given a seven days of police remand.

BSF angry with Dhaka media role- Force warns BDR:ed

From The Telegraph OUR CORRESPONDENT Shillong, July 9: The BSF, besides dealing with smuggling and illegal migration, has another headache — that of countering Bangladesh media for allegedly carrying disinformation campaign against the force — at the initiative of Lt Col Zahirul Alam, commander of the 21 battalion of the BDR at Sylhet in the neighbouring country. The BSF today cautioned Bangladesh media to find out the truth regarding the border situation in Meghalaya rather than giving fabricated reports about the “illegal cultivation and encroachment of Bangladeshi land” by Indian nationals. The BSF has also urged them to realise that the commander of the 21 Bn BDR wants to keep the issue of land of adverse possession held by India alive, thereby becoming a messiah of the local Bangladeshi population. BSF public relations officer Ravi Gandhi in a statement issued here today said it is a well-planned strategy by the BDR, especially by the commander of 21 Bn BDR, Alam, to sensationalise the issue related to areas of adverse possession. “Alam is trying to garner support of the locals in the border areas by giving them false promises that they would be allotted plots of land in the areas of adverse possession once the BDR is able to take them over,” the statement said. The BSF has also alleged that Alam is taking aggressive posture and keeping the issue alive to get the sympathy of his seniors aiming at a promotion.......................................... .......