IANS
AGARTALA, DECEMBER 1
There is no threat from the Islamic State terror group along India’s borders in the northeastern states, a BSF official said here on Tuesday.
“There is no threat of IS terrorists on India’s northeastern frontier. Our border is safe and secured,” Border Security Force (BSF) Tripura frontier Inspector General M.F. Farooqui told reporters.
“The IS is not an issue in this frontier and there is no impact of the terrorist group in this border,” he added.
Farooqui, a 1995 batch Indian Police Service officer of the Gujarat cadre, said that for the border guarding force, it depends on who is the neighbour and what is the approach of the neighbouring nation.
“This force is equally efficient both in the eastern and the western frontiers,” he said, adding that the BSF was the world’s largest border guarding force safeguarding India’s borders along Pakistan, Bangladesh and China.
He said that from 25 battalions in 1965, the BSF now has 186 battalions comprising 2.5 lakh troopers and officers currently posted on 13 frontiers, including three frontiers in the northeastern states.
Raised in December 1, 1965, the BSF is celebrating its golden jubilee with many functions and programmes.
The BSF on the 856-km Tripura frontier has seized contraband valued at Rs.9.52 crore this year.
The BSF official said the number of camps of militants in northeast India was decreasing in neighbouring Bangladesh as the present government in that country was very supportive of
“All disputed issues with Bangladesh have been religiously followed up by the BSF,” he said.
Four northeastern states share an 1,880-km border with Bangladesh. The states are Tripura (856 km), Meghalaya (443 km), Mizoram (318 km) and Assam (263 km).
The mountainous terrain and dense forests make the borders porous and vulnerable, enabling illegal immigrants and intruders to sometimes cross over without much hindrance.
