Eastern borders more problematic than western region: BSF

From Yahoo News

Agartala, Oct 11 (IANS) India's eastern borders pose more problems than the western part of the international boundary, a top Border Security Force (BSF) officer said here Monday.

'India's western part of the international borders are largely plains, better fenced and well guarded while eastern region of the boundaries are both plains and mountainous besides not being fully fenced,' Pranay Sahaya, newly appointed special director general of the BSF, told reporters.

He added that there were fewer inter BOPs (border outposts) on the western border than in the east.

'I will study the international borders carefully before taking suitable plans to further strengthen vigil along the eastern Indian border,' said Sahaya, who will take charge of special DG of the BSF Tuesday in Kolkata.

A 1975 batch Manipur-Tripura cadre Indian Police Service officer, Sahaya was the director general of Tripura police and worked in that northeastern border state in various capacities for more than two decades.

He said inter-linkages between separatist outfits of the northeastern region had been weakening while sharing of information and experiences between the security forces of northeast was being strengthened.

'In Bangladesh, in view of the crackdown by the security forces of that country against the northeast India militants, the camps of Tripura terrorists have been reduced to 18 now from 45 in 2003.'

'I have seen some instances of a few security personnel of other states conniving with militant outfits, but Tripura is the only state where no such case has been found so far,' the senior IPS officer said.

As part of the modernisation plan, he said, police stations in Tripura would be online from January next year.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/43/20101011/812/tnl-eastern-borders-more-problematic-tha_1.html

Pressure on Indian militants in Bangladesh to bring peace in northeast

From News.Oneindia
Agartala, Oct 12 (ANI): Pranay Sahaya, the newly appointed special director general of the Border Security Forces (BSF), has said that peace in the northeastern region depends on political dispensation in Bangladesh.
Addressing a press conference here yesterday, Sahaya gave the credit to the counter-insurgency efforts by the security forces and also appreciated the efforts by the Bangladesh government.

"It was I guess the paper of 2005, which showed the figure as 45, but in today's date, they are just 18 camps, five of ATTF, 12 of NLFT (both outlawed militant groups of Tripura). You can well understand that pressure has been mounted not only by this police but also by the Bangladesh government," he said.

He further said that the camps of the outlawed outfits of the northeast, which were once within close proximity of the India-Bangladesh border, are now being shifted deep inside Bangladesh and slowly becoming inoperative.

"But then one thing is for sure that about two-and-a-half years back, the camps were very close to India, within three to four kilometres. Now each of these camps has gone back ten to twelve kilometres (inside Bangladesh). The fear both from Bangladesh and India on these camps is there," he added.

Sahaya also said that manning India's eastern borders is tougher than the western part of the international border due to several factors like tough terrain and low visibility.

'India's western part of the international borders are largely plains, better fenced and well guarded while eastern region of the boundaries are both plains and mountainous besides not being fully fenced,' he added.

He said the distance between two BOPs (border outposts) on the western border is lesser than in the eastern part of the borders.

'I will study the international borders carefully before taking suitable plans to further strengthen vigil along the eastern Indian border,' he added. (ANI)

http://news.oneindia.in/2010/10/12/pressureon-indian-militants-in-bangladesh-to-brings-peacei.html

KATRA READY FOR MISSION DOSTI INDO-PAK WRESTLING

From KushtiWrestlingBlogspot

EARLY TIMES REPORT

JAMMU, October 11: Holy town of Katra is all set to host the 6th edition of Mission Dosti Rustam-e-Indo-Pak Wrestling competition on October14 at Vivekanand Sports Stadium in district Reasi.
Part of the ongoing 15th Navratra Festival, wrestling meet shall take place on seventh Navratra under the banner of J&K Indian Style Wrestling Association. This sports event is also supported by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, J&K Tourism Department, Navratra Festival Committee, Katra Municipal Committee and district administration as also the locals.
This was disclosed by president of J&K Indian Style Wrestling Association, Shiv Kumar Sharma. “Besides a 10-member Pakistani team, which shall reach Katra on October 13, a host of reputed international and national wrestlers from Maharashtra, Delhi, Harayana, Punjab, Himachal, UP and Chandigarh as also Railways, BSF and J&K Police have already confirmed their participation in the historic competition,” said Shiv Kumar.
The inauguration function of the competition shall be held at Vivekanand Sports Stadium at 1 pm, while the concluding of the same shall be take place at 6 pm. Over 40 individuals, including 20 officials, have been assigned the task of smooth conduct of the competition.
“Winner of this historical wrestling event will get cash reward of Rs 51,000 in addition to traditional `Silver Gurj and Patta,” disclosed Sharma.
To give it a festive look, the organizers have arranged showering of flower petals through Helicopter during wrestling competition at around 5 pm at the venue. Before the start of the competition, top wrestlers from India and Pakistan would be taken around the main bazaar of Katra to accord grand reception and to seek blessings of the locals.
The participating Pakistani wrestlers are Abdul Majeed, Yousaf Riazm Maroof, Muhammad Shafiq, Muhammad Bashir (Bhola), Safdar Ali, Israr Hussain Awan, Khawaja Muhammad Falahud-Din, Muhammad Umair and Bilal Hussain.

http://kushtiwrestling.blogspot.com/

India to launch series of defence satellites

From One India
Bangalore, Oct 10: India plans to launch a series of defence satellites, which will serve the necessary military purposes for Indian army like surveillance, imaging and communication, a defence scientist said on Saturday, Oct 9.

"There will be a series of indigenously built satellites. I cannot give you the numbers because they are classified," VK Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, said.

"Each year, you will find one or two satellites going up," added the Secretary, Defence R & D and Director General of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

"You should be able to see with very high resolution and precision the movements of troops and things like that in the neighbourhood," Saraswat said. 

The defence satellites would be indigenously built and launched from home soil only given the security sensitivity, Saraswat added.

India has taken up development and launch of these defence satellites under its space-based surveillance programme, which has a road-map for setting up satellites for all applications for the Army, Navy and Air Force, he said.

OneIndia News
http://news.oneindia.in/2010/10/10/india-to-launch-series-of-defence-satellites.html

Infiltration attempts have gone up in last 2 months: Army

From The Hindu

New Delhi, October 11, 2010

PTI

Caption:Chief of Army Staff General V.K. Singh. File Photo

Around 25 infiltration attempts have been made by militants from across the Line of Control (LoC) in the last two months and 35-40 terrorists have been killed by the security forces during the same period, Army chief General V.K. Singh said on Monday.

He said the number of infiltration attempts has gone up in the last two months but the Army has been able to control it to a large extent.

“In the last two months, we have had approximately 20-25 attempts and the total number of terrorists killed during this period has been about 35-40,” Gen. Singh told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.

Asked about reports suggesting that Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin has been visiting terror camps along the LoC with Pakistan Army and ISI officials, the Army chief said, .

“Salahuddin is on the other side... We are not worried that with whom he goes around. If he tries to infiltrate, he would also be dealt in the same way his accomplices are.”

Gen Singh said to counter infiltration, the Army has evolved a strategy under which even if somebody manages to infiltrate Indian territory, “he gets killed later on.”

“As far as infiltration is concerned, we have controlled it to a large extent... In the last two months, there have been many attempts to infiltrate and we have achieved a lot of success also in this regard,” he added.

Asked about the attacks by Chinese hackers on Indian networks, Gen Singh said, “The whole world is worried about cyber security... Our other government websites have also been attacked and technology is such a field in which both defensive and offensive means are applied.”

“We are trying to take measures which can ensure that our networks are not in danger,” he added.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article824900.ece?service=mobile

Infiltration attempts have gone up in last 2 months: Army

New Delhi, October 11, 2010

PTI

Caption:Chief of Army Staff General V.K. Singh. File Photo

Around 25 infiltration attempts have been made by militants from across the Line of Control (LoC) in the last two months and 35-40 terrorists have been killed by the security forces during the same period, Army chief General V.K. Singh said on Monday.

He said the number of infiltration attempts has gone up in the last two months but the Army has been able to control it to a large extent.

“In the last two months, we have had approximately 20-25 attempts and the total number of terrorists killed during this period has been about 35-40,” Gen. Singh told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.

Asked about reports suggesting that Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin has been visiting terror camps along the LoC with Pakistan Army and ISI officials, the Army chief said, .

“Salahuddin is on the other side... We are not worried that with whom he goes around. If he tries to infiltrate, he would also be dealt in the same way his accomplices are.”

Gen Singh said to counter infiltration, the Army has evolved a strategy under which even if somebody manages to infiltrate Indian territory, “he gets killed later on.”

“As far as infiltration is concerned, we have controlled it to a large extent... In the last two months, there have been many attempts to infiltrate and we have achieved a lot of success also in this regard,” he added.

Asked about the attacks by Chinese hackers on Indian networks, Gen Singh said, “The whole world is worried about cyber security... Our other government websites have also been attacked and technology is such a field in which both defensive and offensive means are applied.”

“We are trying to take measures which can ensure that our networks are not in danger,” he added.

Anti-Maoist operation kicks off again

From Daily Bhaskar

(11/10/10)

Raipur: Maoist activities have been increasing constantly in the new region of Raipur, Mahasamund and Raigarh. Government officials are going to hold the meet of Unified Command on Monday in order to devise a plan for combating the problem.

Chief Minister Dr. Raman Singh will be the head of the meeting. Top officials of Unified Command will be present in the meeting. Officials will discuss the ways to control Maoist activities in the affected areas.

The operation to control Maoists is expected to pick up pace again. It had been going a little slow since a few days due to rains.

This time, government is coming up with new strategies to fight the problem. Officers from CRPF, BSF, local police officers will also be present in the meeting along with the officers of Unified Command.

 http://daily.bhaskar.com/article/anti-maoist-operation-kicks-off-again-1445643.html

भारत से पाक में प्रवेश की कोशिश, बीएसएफ ने मार गिराया

 से 

सोमवार,11 अक्टूबर, 2010

जम्मू। बीएसएफ ने शनिवार रात 12 बजकर 5 मिनट पर अंतरराष्ट्रीय सीमा पर भारत की ओर से पाक सीमा में प्रवेश की कोशिश करते एक व्यक्ति को मार गिराया है। जम्मू सेक्टर के सांबा में मावा क्षेत्र स्थित रीगल पोस्ट पर गश्त कर रहे बीएसएफ जवानों ने देर रात इस व्यक्ति को देखा था। जिसके बाद जवानों द्वारा की गई फायरिंग में घुसपैठिए की मौत हो गई।


बीएसएफ डीआईजी जे.एस. ओबेरॉय के मुताबिक मारे गए व्यक्ति का शव पुलिस को सौंप दिया गया है, हालांकि उसकी पहचान नहीं हो पाई है। आशंका जताई गई है कि ये व्यक्ति बांगलादेशी हो सकता है। जवानों द्वारा सीमा पार की कोशिश कर रहे व्यक्ति पर की जा रही फायरिंग के बाद पास ही में स्थित पाक के पोस्ट से भी फायरिंग की गई। हांलाकि बाद में बीएसएफ द्वारा बुलाई गई मीटिंग में भारत ने पाक के सामने ये साफ कर दिया की ये फायरिंग उनकी पोस्ट पर नहीं बल्कि उस व्यक्ति पर की गई थी। 

सात दिन के भीतर चौथी घटना 
6 अक्टूबर को बीएसएफ ने अंतरराष्ट्रीय सीमा पर गश्त के दौरान ज मू में मकवाल बेल्ट के सि बल पोस्ट से चार बांगलादेशियों को घुसपैठ की कोशिश करता देख गिर तार किया था। वहीं ज मू के ही सांबा से पांच अक्टूबर को बीएसएफ ने पाकिस्तानी नागरिक को गिर तार किया था। वहीं दो दिन पहले सांबा सेक्टर में पाक कि ओर से घुसपैठ की कोशिश को बीएसएफ ने नाकाम किया था। 

नियंत्रण रेखा के पास से घुसपैठिया गिर तार
नियंत्रण रेखा से सटे राजौरी जिले से सेना ने एक पाक घुसपैठिये को गिरफ्तार किया है। इनायतउल्ला नामक ये घुसपैठी पीओके के निकयाल गांव का रहनेवाला है। नियंत्रण रेखा के पीर की गली क्षेत्र से सेना की डोगरा रेजिमेंट के जवानों ने घुसपैठिए को गिरफ्तार किया है। सेना ने इसके पास से एक आइडेंटिटी कार्ड भी बरामद किया है। फिलहाल पुलिस इससे पूछताछ कर मामले की जांच कर रही है। 

आतंकियों को ज्यादा से ज्यादा संख्या में घुसपैठ के निर्देश
गौरतलब है कि शनिवार को भारत सरकार द्वारा जारी एक बयान में घुसपैठ बढ़ने की आशंका जताई गई थी। बयान के अनुसार आतंकी संगठन हिजबुल मुजाहिद्दीन की प्रमुख सैयद सलाउद्दीन ने नियंत्रण रेखा से सटे आतंकी कैंप का दौरा कर आतंकियों को ज्यादा से ज्यादा संख्या में घुसपैठ करने के निर्देश दिए हैं। सरकार के अनुसार हिजबुल प्रमुख द्वारा आतंकी कैंप का दौरा भारत के लिए चिंता का विषय है।

घुसपैठ की घटनाओं पर एक नजर
-- साल 2009 में 413 घुसपैठ की घटनाओं के दौरान 93 आतंकियों की मौत हो गई जबकि 110 घुसपैठियों ने सीमा में प्रवेश किया।
-- साल 2010 में जनवरी से लेकर सितंबर तक 285 आतंकियों ने घुसपैठ की कोशिश की, आशंका जताई जा रही है कि इनमें से 90 आतंकी घुसपैठ करने में सफल रहे।
-- इस साल सुरक्षाबलों ने जनवरी से लेकर जून तक 59 आतंकियों का खात्मा किया है।
-- आधिकारिक आंकड़ो के अनुसार 700 आतंकी ज मू कश्मीर राज्य में सक्रिय हैं।
-- वहीं सीमा पार 42 आतंकी कैंप में लगभग 2000 से 2500 आतंकी रह रहे हैं। 
-- नियंत्रण रेखा पर घुसपैठ की कोशिश के मामले 

साल 2009 में 395
साल 2008 में 342 
साल 2007 में 535 
साल 2006 में 573
-- सबसे ज्यादा शांत रहे साल 2009 में 2008 के मुकाबले हिंसात्म घटनाओं में एक तिहाई कमी देखने को 
मिली।
http://www.bhaskar.com/article/NAT-bsf-shot-dead-man-trying-to-cross-border-1446027.html

Now, BSF trains guns on malaria

From The Times Of India

TNN, Oct 10, 2010

JAISALMER: The Border Security Force has stepped ahead to defend the border district of Jaisalmer from the outbreak of malaria. Doctors from the BSF have organised camps at more than a dozen villages and treated more than 1,500 patients over the past couple of days. The western districts of Rajasthan are experiencing a steep rise in malaria cases following the good monsoon. 

"Water accumulated at locations has added to the mosquito population giving rise to the incidence of malaria cases," said B L Meghwal, DIG, BSF, northern sector. BSF personnel also sprayed anti-larvel chemicals at various locations. 

According to BSF officials, Pokhran tehsil has been the worst-affected from the disease following which camps were held in many places

Read more: Now, BSF trains guns on malaria - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/Now-BSF-trains-guns-on-malaria/articleshow/6722113.cms#ixzz11yQZYny8

The CPMF conundrum-With this deployment of the CPMFs, where is the time for them to train and rest?

From Vibha Tailang Blogspot

Sunday, October 10, 2010

With this deployment of the CPMFs, where is the time for them to train and rest?

From the Report Card of the Ministry of Home Affairs for the month of September 2010 presented by the Union Home Minister:

In anticipation of the judgment, 52 coys of CPMFs were deployed to Uttar Pradesh, including 40 CRPF and 12 RAF coys. CPMF coys were also deployed in other States. A separate pool of coys has been kept in reserve for any emergency. The IAF is on standby to rush CPMF/Army personnel to trouble spots, if required.
The security arrangements for the Commonwealth Games were reviewed from time to time. 50 CPMFs coys have been deployed for the Games, including 7 BSF, 6 CRPF, 12 CISF, 11 IRB and 14 SAP coys. Later today, Government will make a detailed statement as well as issue an Advisory on the security arrangements for the benefit of the ticketholders, invitees and the general public.
450 CPMF coys have been deployed for the Bihar assembly elections due in October-November, 2010. These include 70 CRPF, 90 BSF, 90 CISF, 30 ITBP, 40 RPF, 30 SSB and 100 IRB/SAP coys.[PIB]
Besides these, there are CPMF companies deployed in Jammu & Kashmir, North Eastern states and in the anti-Maoist operations. The BSF and the ITBP are also tasked to guard India’s International border with its neighbours.
The standard rule for all forces is to have one-third of its troopers deployed in operations, one-third in training and one-third in rest, preparing for the next deployment. With the kind of deployment that these CPMF have, where is the time for them to train and rest adequately?
This question must be seen in the context of the propensity of Indian media and its experts to blame the CPMFs for their lack of professionalism, whether operating against the violent stone-pelting mobs in Kashmir or while fighting the deadly Maoist insurgency.
The obvious solution to the problem seems rather simple: increase their numbers so that there exists a cushion to deploy adequately trained and properly invigorated troopers for operational duties. However this may perhaps not be the complete truth. This shortage of CPMFs has exacerbated because the states, while having law and order as a subject under their charter, have created no reserve capacity in their police forces. Even when the reserve police units exist in the states, they are poorly trained, ill-equipped and often found unequal to the tasks assigned to them. This has led to the situation where the state governments do not trust their state reserve forces and seek increasingly greater number of CPMFs to deal with any security situation. In today’s political climate, it is often impossible for the centre to deny any request from the state for such assistance, its impact on the overall health of the CPMFs notwithstanding.
The solution lies in asking the state governments to allocate a certain number of state reserve police units for a central pool, where they should be deployed on centre’s direction. Alternatively, the centre should display enough political will to vet each requirement from the states before despatching the CPMFs. Increasing the strength of already unwieldy CPMFs must only be considered as an option of last resort.
In the meanwhile, it would be instructive to draw out the statistical data for all CPMF units over the last two decades to ascertain their periods of deployment to periods of training and periods of rest. The availability of this information may hopefully get the debate on this subject on the right track.

Of course, a far simpler way to overcome this problem is for the states to undertake police reforms. But alas, who cares for police reforms in India?

http://wwwvibhatailang.blogspot.com/2010/10/cpmf-conundrum-with-this-deployment-of.html

'We have adapted to ground reality' :CRPF Chief

From The times Of India
Oct 10,2010
K Vijay Kumar, a 1975 batch Tamil Nadu cadre IPS officer, took over as chief of the CRPF this week, amidst mounting concern about the challenges faced by the force. With an impressive resume, Kumar was probably the best candidate to lead the force at this juncture. He will be under pressure to deliver, with the CRPF confronted by diverse problems in Kashmir, the Maoist belt and the northeast. On the phone from Chhattisgarh, where he is on his first official visit as CRPF director general, Kumar spoke to Josy Joseph 

Summer in Kashmir, the massacre at Dantewada, 2010 has not been a good year for the CRPF and the change of leadership comes at a testing time. 

There will be certain phases in the life of an organization. We will not be stuck in a situation. We are in a constant go-ahead. There would be certain reverses, some hard patches that are but natural for a dynamic organization. Eventually a force with resilience and inner strength will emerge stronger. 

The CRPF has come to be the face of India's war against many raging insurgencies. You have gone from being a reserve police force to being out in strength in major theatres for a very long time. 
There are several forces involved in counter-insurgency operations. The BSF is there. But yes, we are out there in large numbers. We have replaced the BSF in J&K in the recent years. 

You aren't getting the kind of rest and recuperation that army's counter-insurgency units are able to afford... 

Yes, rest and recuperation is a subject being addressed. I understand that some of this is being addressed by the home ministry. I am also trying to understand the precise functions and they are on my key agenda in the ongoing field visits. Wherever internally possible, I am telling my field commanders to do adjustments to provide our personnel with proper support and rest. Other things, the larger issues, we will look into it with the ministry. 

The CRPF was originally meant to be the 'reserve' force. But you are now out there, deployed in theatre for years. 
It is a reflection of ground reality. Various things happen. No organization can be stationary. You have to adapt. The very reason why the Rapid Action Force was created in the early 90s was because of a particular situation that emerged in those days. Similar responses suitable to the environment will have to emerge. 

There has been concern about the kind of disconnect between the leadership and men on the ground within the CRPF. 

We have a very outstanding leadership, you cannot generalize. I have seen very little of the force now for me to comment in detail but I am convinced that you cannot generalize about any kind of disconnect. I find patrol leaders and company commanders doing great work in the field here (Chhattisgarh). I don't think there is any scope to generalize about any leadership drawbacks, but if there are any aberrations we will address them. I am very privileged to be leading this force. 

Your role is significantly changing in places like Kashmir, where the original mandate was to be a counter-insurgency force. Today, you are doing more crowd control than anything else. 

I understand that already there has been some kind of discussion on this issue. We have a multiple theatre kind of situation — riot control, counter-insurgency and law and order. These need specialized groups. We will look at expanding such responses.

Read more: 'We have adapted to ground reality' - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-toi/special-report/We-have-adapted-to-ground-reality/articleshow/6721393.cms#ixzz11yOSWwjk

BD Press:Sylhet border tense as Indian BSF builds road inside Bangladesh

From new age bd

File Photo of BDR personnel confronting Indian BSF soldier:wordpress.com

Government-level decision was necessary before initiating a move like construction of any structures along the border

Friday October 09 2010 

Panic gripped the people living in the border areas in Sylhet frontier as the Indian border security force continued constructing a road and a bridge some 150 yards inside Bangladesh in Goainghat upazila still Thursday ignoring protests from the Bangladesh Rifles.(The New Age BD )

Sources in the BDR and local residents said BSF personnel took a sudden move on October 1 to construct a road over a stretch of 230 acres inside Bangladesh along the border pillar 1270 and 1271 near Pratappur BBR outpost with a plan to build a bridge there.

The BDR protested at the Indian border guards’ activities and requested BSF officials concerned to stop the construction work.

But the BSF continued the construction work saying that they were just repairing an old road and not building any new structures in the area.

After repeated request from the 21 Rifles Battalion, the BSF at first agreed on a joint survey to be conducted by the company level officers of both sides to ascertain the ownership of the land over which the road and bridge were being constructed, sources in the BDR said.

But, the BSF official concerned backed away from the agreement on the plea that the company level or battalion level authorities had no right to conduct such a joint survey of a disputed land. The BSF said that the matter should be discussed at the state level.

The BDR sources said there was no deputed land in the Pratappur border as par the Land Boundary Agreement of 1974. The matter was settled by the then governments of Bangladesh and India.

BDR’s Pratappur outpost in-charge nayeb subedar Shahed Ali told New Age on Thursday that the BSF had continued constructing the road and the bridge inside Bangladesh territory since October 1, despite repeated protests from the BDR.

Layek Ahmad, a resident of Hazipur village along the Pratappur border said the BSF men were constructing the road to connect their Padua camp with the zonal headquarters of the BSF.

‘We fear clashes between the two border guards. We will have to suffer in the event of a border skirmish because we have to leave our homes…,’ he said.

When contacted, 21 Rifles Battalion’s commanding officer lieutenant colonel Khairul Kadir told New Age on Thursday evening that the BDR was watching the situation.

He said the BSF authorities did not respond positively so far despite the BDR’s repeated requests over the issue.

‘We have informed our higher authorities about the matter,’ the BDR official said.

He told New Age that a government-level decision was necessary before initiating a move like construction of any structures along the border.

‘So far as I know, no such decision has been taken by the Bangladesh and Indian governments,’ he said.

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