BSF organises Bharat Darshan for Kashmiri Girls

From DNA

Tuesday, Jan 11, 2011, 10:26 IST 
By HM Chaithanya Swamy | Place: Bangalore | Agency: DNA

There was no curfew, no raids, no sound of gunfire which echoed in their hearts, no stone-throwing and no fear to walk out in the open. For a group of girls from Kashmir, this was perhaps once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the country they love the most.

The children were in the city as part of a pan-India tour — Bharat Darshan — organised by the Border Security Force (BSF). On Monday morning, they called upon the city police commissioner.

Earlier, they had visited Mysore, Lalbagh and the Maharaja’s Palace.

Top cop Shankar M Bidari extended them a warm welcome. The girls treated the police to folk songs and concluded the brief cultural programme with a song that described the country: “Saare jahan se achaa...”

“This is the first time that we are taking girls on a tour. We are happy that their parents sent the children with us,” said deputy superintendent of police BB Hosamani.

Two groups embarked on the trip on January 7. One group has 18 girls, while the other has 20 boys, all from remote places of Jammu & Kashmir. The groups are travelling separately.

The national integration tour is meant to introduce the children to the diverse culture and landscapes of the country. Later in the day, they toured the city. On Tuesday they will leave for Delhi, Ajmer, Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Agra.
http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_kashmiri-girls-call-on-bangalore_1493043

Chidambaram Reviews Anti-Naxal Strategy

From OutlookIndia.Com
NEW DELHI | JAN 10, 2011
Home Minister P Chidambaram today took stock of anti-Maoist operations and coordination amongst state police and paramilitary officers of Naxal-affected states of the country as he met the top brass of these forces here.

Chidambaram chaired a high-level meet of Directors General and Inspectors General of Operations of states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, and chiefs of paramilitary forces like CRPF, BSF, ITBP and SSB.

Issues like joint operations in close coordination of forces along inter-state borders, general synergy, and improvement of living conditions of the force personnel deployed for anti-Naxal operations were discussed in the meeting which lasted for more than four hours at the CRPF headquarters here, sources said.

Logistical arrangement, air support for supplementing troops and casualty evacuation were also said to have been discussed during the meeting.

The Minister was also shown a presentation on the present deployment of security forces and Naxal hotbeds in these states.

The meeting also discussed deployment of additional helicopters -- both government as well as private -- to aid the operations. The effectiveness of Unified Commands structure in some states was also discussed threadbare.

More than 60,000 central paramilitary forces have been assisting the state police forces in these states to undertake counter-Maoist offensives.

The success of the forces in the last few months was largely attributed to the joint coordinated efforts of the police forces of the states as well as the Centre and better intelligence networks.

Naxal violence has claimed the lives of over 10,000 civilians and security personnel in the last five years.

Out of a total of 10,268 casualties between 2005 and May 2010, 2,372 deaths have been reported in 2009 as against 1,769 in 2008 and 1,737 in 2007.

Government has been maintaining that accelerated development and calibrated police action are the two pillars of its anti-Naxal policy.
http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?707931

Orissa now ready to take on Maoists, says state home secretary

From DNA

Published: Monday, Jan 10, 2011,

Place: Bhubaneswar | Agency: PTI

Fuelled with "adequate force" and enthused by the elimination of at least 14 rebels in a span of 10 days, Orissa government today said it was now ready to prevent Maoist attacks and take on ultras in jungles and hideouts.

Orissa home secretary UN Behera said the state now could successfully prevent Maoist attacks as it had "adequate force comprising five battalions of BSF and seven battalions of CRPF besides its elite anti-Maoist Special Operation Group (SOG)."

While one battalion force comprises 540 personnel, one unit of SOG has 30 members. About 50 units of SOG was engaged in anti-Maoist operation in the state, officials said.

The home secretary described yesterday's encounter in Badangmali area of Rayagada district in which nine ultras, including four women, were killed as an "intelligence based operation," and said the state has developed intelligence network to track ultras movements.

"We expect recovery of more bodies from jungles in Badangmali area of Rayagada district," deputy inspector general of police (south-western), Soumendra Priyadarshi said.

"We have recovered about half-a-truck load of arms and ammunition including INSAS rifles from Maoist hideouts in Rayagada where search is on for more bodies," the DIG said.

One of the ultras killed in Rayagada was identified as D Srinivas Rao alias Ramesh, considered as 'guru' of Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda. Andhra Pradesh government had announced Rs3 lakh reward on Ravi, he said.

Ravi was heading Kashipur Dalam of the out-lawed CPI (Maoist) in Orissa, Behera said.

Five ultras including, four women were, gunned down at Tamka in Jajpur district on January 2 in an encounter with security personnel.

Around a dozen of them, including five teenage girls, have, meanwhile, surrendered before the police expressing their desire to return to the mainstream, he said.

Orissa government feels implementation of integrated action plan in 15 Maoist-hit and backward areas has started paying dividend. About Rs850 crore would be spent on these developmental work in next two years, the home secretary said.

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_orissa-now-ready-to-take-on-maoists-says-state-home-secretary_1492873

Shoot-at-sight in Garo hills & Goalpara

From The Telegraph OUR BUREAU

Displaced villagers at a relief camp at Dilma in Garo hills’ Mendipathar. Telegraph picture Shillong/Kokrajhar/ Dhubri, Jan. 10: A high-level team, led by the joint secretary, home (in-charge of Northeast), Shambu Singh, met district administration in East Garo Hills this afternoon and advised shoot-at-sight orders against violators of curfew. Assam home department officials and senior police officials accompanied Singh to East Garo Hills. Earlier, the team, which visited the affected areas in Goalpara district, issued shoot-at-sight orders in Assam’s Goalpara district. East Garo Hills deputy commissioner Pravin Bakshi, who had a meeting with the team, said over phone that the Centre has agreed to provide additional companies of paramilitary forces. “We will also not spare any troublemongers or criminals who target innocent people and their properties. The shoot-at-sight order will be strictly implemented,” Bakshi said. After the meeting, Singh said that criminals and people with vested interests were fomenting trouble in the border area with an ulterior motive. The Union home ministry has called a high-level meeting in Guwahati tomorrow, to be attended by the directors-general of police and home department officials of Assam and Meghalaya in the wake of the recurring bouts of ethnic violence. There has been no end to the torching of houses along the border following the clashes between Garos and Rabhas since January 1. The death toll in the violence stands at 10. Criminals fired at an Assam police camp around 5.30 this morning at Belpara, adjacent to Resubelpara on the Assam-Meghalaya border. On Saturday night, a Rabha and a Garo were killed in the border villages under Goalpara in ethnic clashes. Several Garo villagers, who had fled the three clash-hit villages — Chitugona, Chigisim and Khasigagra — under Goalpara after their houses were torched, have taken shelter in the relief camps in East Garo Hills. There were reports of militants from the Rabha Security Force and the Rabha Viper Army carrying out attacks on several villages along the border. Yesterday, the BSF with the help of the police in East Garo Hills, arrested four Rabha Security Force militants from Balmuri village at Bajengdoba. The BSF also seized crude bombs, a 12-bore rifle, a countrymade pistol,khukris, daggers, firecrackers, bows and arrows, mobile phones and 300ml of kerosene bottle from the militants. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110111/jsp/northeast/story_13418950.jsp

Chidambaram reviews operational preparedness of BSF

From DNA

 Tuesday, Jan 11, 2011

Home minister P Chidambaram

Home minister P Chidambaram today reviewed the operational preparedness of the BSF which guards crucial Indian borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Chidambaram along with senior officials of the home ministry and BSF spent more than three hours here at the headquarters of the force, where he was given a presentation on its deployment and other operational aspects.

Anti-Maoist operations and coordination with state police and para-military officers of Naxal-affected states were also discussed, sources said.

The Border Security Force has deployed around five battalions (5,000 personnel) for undertaking anti-naxal operations.

Today's meeting comes against the backdrop of a similar high-level conclave (chaired by Chidambaram) of Directors General and Inspectors General of Operations of states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, and chiefs of paramilitary forces like CRPF, BSF, ITBP and SSB, yesterday at CRPF headquarters where operational strategies were discussed.

Topics like joint operations in close coordination of forces at inter-state borders and improvement of living conditions of personnel deployed for anti-Naxal operations were also understood to have been discussed, they said.

Maintaining easy and quick serviceability of helicopters for air support for supplementing troops and casualty evacuation were also believed to have been discussed as the air wing in naxal states is under the command of the BSF.

Over 60,000 central paramilitary forces have been assisting the state police forces in these states to undertake counter-Maoist offensives.

Naxal violence has claimed lives of over 10,000 civilians and security personnel in the last five years.

Of the 10,268 casualties between 2005 and May 2010, 2,372 deaths have been reported in 2009 against 1,769 in 2008 and 1,737 in 2007.

The government has been maintaining that accelerated development and calibrated police action are the two pillars of its anti-Naxal policy.

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_chidambaram-reviews-operational-preparedness-of-bsf_1493302

Aircraft deal for BSF likely to be scrapped

From NDTV.COM
January 12, 2011
New Delhi:  Reacting to an NDTV report that defence documents were forged for a 300 million dollar aircraft deal for the Border Security Force (BSF), the Ministry of Defence is likely to scrap the deal.

The documents are related to purchase of two transport planes for BSF from Spanish firm.

The Central Forensic Laboratory (CFSL) has proved that signatures of top Air Force and BSF officers had been forged.

Forged documents show that state-of-the-art equipment originally agreed upon was replaced with old outdated material. And the documents reportedly never left the Air Force headquarters.
The Home Ministry has formally complained to the Defence Ministry on the issue.

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/ndtv-impact-300-million-aircraft-deal-for-bsf-likely-to-be-scrapped-78954?cp

BSF Jawans celebrates festival of Lohiri at the international border

From Ground Report

by  Vijay Kumar    January 12, 2011

Jammu, January 12 - The Border Security Force  personnel celebrated the festival of 'Lohri'  at the India-Pakistan border in Jammu here on Wednesday braving harsh weather conditions.

According to a News agency, Kashmir Independent Press (KIP) that large number of BSF personnel got together on the occasion and danced to the tunes of drum beats and popular Punjabi numbers to celebrate the festival with fanfare wearing spirit of camaraderie.

The Lohri is celebrated with fervour and gaiety so that troops, who cannot go home during the festival, do not miss their families.

KIP quoting a senior BSF officer taking a break from celebrations at the octroi post, said  
"We are celebrating this festival here with great enthusiasm for our soldiers, who are like our children. We want that they should not miss their homes and families."

"We want that they should feel as if they are celebrating this festival with their families. And you have seen their excitement here," he added.Large number of local vilagers also joined the festivities at the octroi post and together prayed for the peace and prosperity in the region.In Jammu the festival of Lohiri was celebrated at numerous places to mark the change of weather. (KIP).

http://www.groundreport.com/Business/BSF-Jawans-celebrates-festival-of-Lohiri-at-the-in_1/2932780

From BD Press:BGB, BSF hold flag meeting

From The News Today

Chuadanga, Jan 11: Border Guards Bangladesh and Indian Border Security Force (BSF) held a sector commander level flag meeting in India, discussing a number of border issues on Tuesday, reports UNB.
BGB Kushtia Sector Commander Colonel Nazrul Islam led a nine-member BGB delegation at the meeting held at the auditorium of Indian Gede Company headquarters camp opposite Darsana ICP border in Damurhuda upazila.
A 12-member BSF delegation attended the meeting. 
Later, talking to journalists, Lt. Colonel Sultan Ahmed, Chuadanga 35 BGB Commanding Officer, said that they held a seven hour fruitful discussion on different issues of two countries, including drug smuggling, women and child trafficking, unproved firing in border and border pillar.
He said that BSF assured us that BSF jawans would not fire unprovoked in the border.

http://www.newstoday.com.bd/index.php?option=details&news_id=17279&date=2011-01-12

From BD Press:2 Bangladeshis killed in BSF firing on Rajshahi border

From Bangla News 09 Jan 2011     District correspondent banglanews24.com RAJSHAHI: Indian Border Security Force (BSF) personnel have killed two Bangladeshis on Khanpur border under Motihar thana in the city. Although the killings took place on Saturday morning, but police confirmed the incident at night. The deceased were identified as Sirajul Islam, 40, of Bhuglabari village and Jaijuddin, 20, of Jagannathpur village, in Shibganj upazila of Chapainawabganj district. Police sub inspector Shahjahan Ali told banglanews that he came to know the incident on Saturday night. He also said SI Kamruzzaman of the previous shift put information about the killings on a note. But no general diary (GD) or case was filed in this regard till filing of this report on Saturday midnight. An official of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), wishing anonymity, also confirmed the killings and said the BSF authorities have been asked to hold a flag meeting. Asked why the incident of killings was not published on Saturday morning, the official said, “All because of order from high authority.”. BDST: 1200 HRS, JAN 09, 2011 http://www.banglanews24.com/English/detailsnews.php?nssl=e5fb88b398b042f6cccce46bf3fa53e8&nttl=2011011212490

Alleged lottery fraud with links from Pakistan unearthed

From Deccan Herald

Kanpur, Jan 12 (PTI)

A former BSF head constable was today detained by police here for allegedly being part of fake lottery racket being operated from Pakistan whose victims included several air force personnel.

Hari Krishna Yadav, a resident of Zameera village in Sikandra district who retired from BSF in August 2010, claimed he fell victim to the lottery fraud and later turned into an agent to dupe others, Ramabai Nagar Superintendent of Police Ashutosh Kumar said. Investigating teams from Lucknow including of Anti-Terrorism Squd have reached the district today. A team of Air Force officers has also arrived here since it is believed that some Air Force personnel have also fallen victim to the lottery fraud. "In March 2010, Yadav received a call on his mobile phone from an unknown Pakistani number informing him that he had won Rs 25 lakh in a lottery. The caller who identified himself as Mahender Singh asked Yadav to deposit some amount in a bank account in order to receive the lottery prize," Ramabai Nagar SP Ashutosh Kumar told PTI. Lured by the lottery amount, he deposited Rs 13 lakh in instalments in an account of an Indian bank. However, when the promised lottery amount did not turn up, Yadav became suspicious and demanded his money back. The caller them asked him to work as an agent and to recover his money in the form of commission, Kumar said. Police said Yadav opened a bank account in Sikandra area and other victims of the lottery fraud were asked by those running the racket to deposit the money in his account. "Police found that on November 11, Rs 11 lakh were withdrawn from the account and approximately Rs 20,000- Rs 25,000 were withdrawn later on consecutive days," Kumar said. Yadav told the police that the caller had asked him to transfer the withdrawn amount through an ITZ cash card and he received some of the money as commission. "Since the fake lottery scam was being coordinated from Ramabai Nagar the investigation has been handed over to the areas police team," said Kanpur IGP Vijay Kumar. As no FIR has been registered in the case, Yadav has been not been arrested and has been taken into custody for questioning, police said

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/128621/alleged-lottery-fraud-links-pakistan.html

Tripura BSF to get chopper

From The Assam Tribune

2011-01-10

PRABIR SIL AGARTALA, Jan 9 � Tripura Frontier of BSF is all set to receive a chopper to maintain strict air surveillance along the Indo-Bangla border.The advance light helicopter � Dhruv � developed by Hindustan Aeronautical Ltd is expected to reach here by end of this month or early next month, officials said here on Sunday.�The hanger is ready to keep the chopper at Agartala Airport�, said Inspector General of Tripura Frontier BSF SK Jain in an exclusive interview with The Assam Trib... Full Article at The Assam Tribune »

 http://connect.in.com/hindustan-construction-company/news/tripura-bsf-to-get-chopper-306909-b683ace1294c3ff970d8de6e6f2a7c1775b3909f.html

BSF का विमान सौदा खटाई में, जांच के आदेश

 से 
10 Jan 2011
नई दिल्ली।। सीमा सुरक्षा बल (बीएसएफ) की ट्रांसपोर्ट एयरक्राफ्ट हासिल करने की योजना को करारा झटका लगा है। इस विमान के सौदे के लिए तैयार दस्तावेजों में लिखे तकनीकी ब्यौरों में कुछ कमियां पाई गई हैं। गृह मंत्रालय और इंडियन एयरफोर्स ने इस मामले में जांच का आदेश दिया है। इस पूरे वाकये पर बीएसएफ फिलहाल खामोश है। 

एयरफोर्स के सूत्रों ने कहा कि दिसंबर के आखिरी हफ्ते में मामले की जांच शुरू कर दी गई थी। जब पता चला कि बीएसएफ के दस्तावेजों से छेड़छाड़ की गई है तो गृह मंत्रालय ने भी जांच के आदेश दे दिए। 

सूत्रों के मुताबिक, हाल में यह खामियां उस वक्त सामने आईं जब उस अंतरराष्ट्रीय कंपनी के साथ बातचीत जारी थी जिसने लाखों डॉलर के इस सौदे के लिए अपनी रुचि दिखाई थी। बातचीत के अंतिम दौर में पाया गया कि रेडार प्रणालियों सहित कई तकनीकी मामलों में बाद में कुछ बदलाव लाए गए। इन कागजों पर इंडियन एयरफोर्स के अधिकारियों के साइन थे। 

जांच में इस बात पर ध्यान दिया जाएगा कि साइन फर्जी थे या किसी ने पूरी तकनीकी समिति को विश्वास में लिए बगैर ही साइन कर दिए। योजना के तहत बीएसएफ को सीमा पर गश्त के लिए आठ हेलिकॉप्टर और तीन विमान अपने बेड़े में शामिल करने थे। 
http://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/7248865.cms

Defence documents forged in $300 million deal

From NDTV  January 09, 2011

Click to Expand & Play

New Delhi:  Imagine ordering Chinese food and then getting a pizza instead. That's exactly what could have happened to the BSF which is looking to acquire two transport aircraft in a 300 million dollar deal.

It now turns out that specifications of key equipment on the aircraft were changed and backed by forged signatures of Indian Air Force officials.

If the aircraft were acquired India would have ended up getting outdated equipment instead of some of the state of the art systems that the BSF wanted.

The documents relate to purchase of two transport planes for BSF from a Spanish firm.

The Change in crucial technical documents was noticed by BSF during last round of negotiations.

The specifications of key safety equipment like emergency location radars were changed.

The Air Force is conducting an inquiry into the incident. The matter may be handed over to CBI.

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/defence-documents-forged-in-300-million-deal-78041

Centre arms forces in trouble zones

From The Hindustan Times
New Delhi, January 08, 2011
In a move aimed at empowering paramilitary forces to operate independently in hotspots of violence, the Centre has given them powers to raid, search and arrest armed insurgents including naxals. Central police forces — deployed at the request of state governments — have not had legal powers in their areas of deployment and drew their authority to act from the state police.

This created a high level of dependence on state police, which one officer termed as “unhealthy subservience”.

He explained the central police forces — say Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel deployed in West Bengal’s Lalgarh region — earlier did not have the powers to even search a vehicle carrying armed cadres of the ruling CPM or Maoists, seize the weapons and arrest them on their own.

The home ministry notification under the Arms Act, however, now enables paramilitary personnel to search and if necessary, arrest anyone with a weapon in their areas.

The notification empowers Assistant Commandants and above as well as subordinate officers above the rank of sub-inspector to exercise powers to perform the duties under sections 19, 22 and 23 whereever they are deployed or called upon, a CRPF officer said.

These three sections empower police officers to demand arms licence of anyone carrying a weapon and arrest him/her if necessary, lead search operations and “stop and search” any means of conveyance to seize arms or ammunition found.

He said the notification, issued last November, had recently been communicated to all field units.

BSF director general Raman Srivastava had recently acknowledged that the force had approached the home ministry for legal measures to empower personnel. He had, however, refused to spell out the powers they were looking at. “If people realise how powerless the central forces are on their own, our personnel are going to really find it difficult to operate,” a BSF officer had later explained.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Centre-arms-forces-in-trouble-zones/Article1-648015.aspx