To check cross-border smuggling, agencies compile data on suspects

Vijay Mohan

Chandigarh, December 11

Security agencies are creating a database of persons with criminal records and other suspicious elements residing in border areas so as to keep a watch on their activities in an effort to check cross-border smuggling.

YB Khurania, Special Director General, Western Command, Border Security Force (BSF), said, “In collaboration with law enforcement agencies, including the police, the Narcotics Control Bureau and the Customs, we are compiling data of persons who are in custody in cases of smuggling or drug trafficking and have been released on bail, parole or completion of their sentence, because there’s a possibility that they may indulge in such activities again.”

A few months ago, the BSF had sent a proposal to the Punjab Government to take preventive detention of persons suspected to be involved in smuggling.

The proposal, along with a list of suspected persons, is being examined by the state government.

Cross-border smuggling has been a cause of concern and the number of drones shot down along the International Border and seizure of narcotics has witnessed a sharp increase in 2023 as compared to the previous years. There have been instances where links with terror modules have come to the fore.

Khurania said to keep a check on movement of suspicious elements along the IB, the BSF and the Punjab Police had initiated a project to install CCTV cameras up to 6 km from the border. The project would be completed by March 2024, he added.

He said with changing tactics of smugglers and the increasing use of drones that drop payloads several kilometres inside the border, the BSF had now increased deployment in depth areas. “Conducting operations in the hinterland along with the police have produced good results,” he said.

Till December 11 this year, 96 drones have been shot down or recovered along the IB, with most incidents being reported in Punjab. “All cases of drone and drug recoveries are analysed and the involvement of locals is investigated along with the police. In several cases, interrogation of suspects has generated a lot of valuable inputs,” Khurania said.

He added that anti-drone measures, including technical, and human elements had been developed.

“In the past few months, there’s a shift from drones that were capable of carrying payloads of 3 to 5 kg to those that carry about 500 grams. The smaller drones are less expensive and hard to detect,” he said.

The BSF has also been carrying out vulnerability mapping to identify and address gaps in border security. A lot of emphasis have been laid on development and upgradation of infrastructure.

Further, to overcome manpower shortage in the BSF, 19,450 constables, including 2913 women, are being recruited. Moreover, 5,069 recruits are undergoing basic training at the Western Command.

In 2023, the Western Command, responsible for managing border from Kargil to Kutch, seized 755 kg of narcotics, 15 rifles and 38 pistols, besides neutralising nine Pakistani intruders and apprehending another 36 Pakistani nationals.

Installing CCTV cameras

The BSF and the Punjab Police have started a project to install CCTV cameras up to 6 km from the border. It will be completed by March 2024. — YB Khurania, special director general, BSF