NOW, DRONES SPOTTED NEAR BORDER IN FEROZEPUR
The BSF on Tuesday sighted two high-flying drones along Punjab’s Hussainiwala sector, days after police recovered Pakistani drones used to airdrop arms and ammunition in border areas of the state. Border Security Force personnel sighted a drone four times on the Pakistani side, while once it was seen almost a kilometre inside the Indian territory near the HK tower border outpost, a BSF official said. Sources said that the troops have been asked to keep hawk’s eye on such developments. The border guarding force has also started sensitising the residents along the border to immediately inform the police or BSF authorities if they spot anything unusual near the zero line.
FEROZEPUR:The personnel of Border Security Force (BSF) were on alert following spotting of drone at the Hussainiwala sector in Ferozepur on Monday late night, prompting the BSF to take up the matter with Pakistan Rangers in a flag meeting on Tuesday . The incident comes days after police recovered Pakistani drones used to airdrop arms and ammunition in border areas of Punjab.
The BSF and Punjab Police have launched a special search operation in the area to ascertain whether any arm or drug consignment was dropped in the Indian territory.
“Last night , the troopers of 136 battalion of the BSF in Hussainiwala joint check post area sighted drone-type object five times. The object was seen four-time on Pakistan side while it entered into the Indian territory once, up to about 1 km near border outpost (BOP) HK Tower area, adjoining Hussainiwala,” revealed official sources pleading anonymity. Later it went across the border and could not be spotted again as its light and sound went off, he added. Another drone reportedly on Pakistan side was again noticed by the BSF personnel at 12.25 am in the area of border outpost Basti Ram Lal, 18km from Ferozepur.
Last month officials in security agencies and the Punjab Police have confirmed that at least eight drone sorties, carrying a total of 80 kg of weapons (arms and ammunition), were sent across the border into Punjab by Pakistan-based Khalistani terror groups between September 9 and 16.
Meanwhile, in a flag meeting on Tuesday at the border in Ferozepur, a deputy commandantrank BSF official raised objection with his Pakistani counterpart regarding entering of drone into Indian territory, said a BSF official, adding that Pakistani side has ruled out any such misadventure from its side.
ROLE OF INDIAN SMUGGLER SUSPECTED
Sighting of the drone in the area of Basti Ram Lal, situated near border village Nihala Khilcha, which belongs to notorious drug smuggler Joginder Singh who was held by a special task force (STF) in October 2017 with huge cache of drug money, has alerted the officials. Joginder had smuggled 98kg heroin in a tube through water route from Pakistan. Pakistan made pistols, sim card and drugs were also seized from his possession. His whole family have remained involved in smuggling contraband. Joginder is currently lodged in a jail at Bathinda.