BSF seizes 25,000 cattle heads along Indo-Bangladesh border this year

The Guwahati Frontier of Border Security Force (BSF) has seized around 25,000 cattle heads worth more than Tk 45 crore along the Indo-Bangladesh border in three districts of Assam and West Bengal this year so far.

The BSF has also seized a sizable amount of illegal drugs worth more than Tk 25 crore along the international border, reports India Today.

Two districts of Assam Dhubri and South Salmara Mankachar and one district of West Bengal Cooch Behar under Guwahati Frontier of BSF, share around a 500 km border with Bangladesh.

In an interview with India Today TV, Rajesh Kumar, Inspector General of BSF (Guwahati Frontier) said, "The Guwahati Frontier of BSF is peculiar compared to other parts of the country because the Brahmaputra river enters into Bangladesh through Guwahati Frontier."

"The jurisdiction along the international border is approximately 500 km out of which around 100 km is riverine nature and the flow of water adds to the smuggling activities," he said.

"We have specialized teams to intercept all types of smuggling along the international border. We have recovered a sizable amount of narcotics including Yaba tablets, Phensedyl cough syrup worth around Rs 22 crore this year so far and caught 280 persons (both Indian and Bangladeshi) who involved in trans-border crimes. We have also seized around 25,000 cattle heads along the international border," Rajesh Kumar said.

The top BSF official further said, "There are several Border Out Posts (BOPs) in the Char areas along Indo-Bangladesh border and during the rainy season some BOPs have flooded and the action against illegal activities has become more difficult during the rainy season."

"But, we are carrying on actions against all types of illegal activities along the international border. We have an intelligence network. Our patrolling teams are on alert 24 hours to check illegal activities. We have physical barriers in forms of fences, but there are lots of riverine areas on the border. We make use of technologies like cameras, thermal imagers, UAVs. We have some technological solutions to deal with riverine border. We already have a project which is called the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS). It comprises lots of cameras, fiber optic sensors, ground sensors, hydrophones and it is under implementation," Rajesh Kumar said.

The top BSF official also said that the BSF personnel have used speed boats to intercept the criminals in the riverine bordering areas and all efforts are being made to contain illegal activities and apprehend criminals.