BSF to introduce terrain-specific tech along int’l border in Punjab

CHANDIGARH: Having ensured zero infiltration along the international border in Punjab in the past one-and-a-half years, the Border Security Force (BSF) is now gearing up to plug all possible gaps by introducing terrain-specific technology to maintain high-quality surveillance at rivers, drains and shifting sand dunes.

BSF additional director general (ADG Western Command) Kamal Nayan Choubey said, “Every other day, there is an unsuccessful infiltration bid on the border. But as infiltration strategies keep changing, so we need to be even more vigilant to counter these.”

“After the January 2016 Pathankot airbase attack, five additional battalions were deputed along the nearly 553-km IB in Punjab. This additional force ensured more intensive patrolling in the area. We will come up with the strategy to counter the violations from the other side of the border by integrating the latest state-of-the-art technology with the required manpower as per the orders of the BSF director general KK Sharma,” the ADG said.

Choubey said as part of the shift in strategy, two pilot projects are being implemented in the BSF’s Western Command to check infiltration by equipping their men with the new technology.

The BSF is striving for clear field or line of vision to check any infiltration bids even though the counterparts across the border use camouflage, tunnels or shifting sand dunes to facilitate the intruders, he said.

Choubey attributed the check on infiltration and smuggling of drugs from across the border to the co-ordination between the BSF, the Narcotics Control Bureau and the Punjab Police.

The drug and weapon seizures by the BSF were made on the basis of specific information and not by stumbling on smugglers, he added.