India, Bangla to hold DG-level meet
The border guarding forces of India and Bangladesh is expected to discuss several issues, including those related to cross-border crimes, as their director generals meet will formally start in Dhaka tomorrow.
This will be the 48th DGlevel conference between the two sides since 1975 and it will continue till June 15 in the Bangladesh capital. Border Security Force (BSF) chief R.K. Mishra is leading a 10member delegation to the neighbouring country. The delegation also comprises of officials from the Union home ministry, which is the controlling authority of the BSF, antinarcotics agencies, and a diplomat from the Indian high commission in Dhaka.
Sources said that talks with the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) will be held at their headquarters in Pilkhana in Dhaka. India is expected to take up issues like BSF personnel being attacked by Bangladeshi criminals in border areas and those related to cross-frontier smuggling during the traditional bi-annual meeting between the two sides between June 12 and June 15. A 24-member BGB delegation, led by Director General (DG) Maj Gen Md Shafeenul Islam, will also be briefed about the frequent instances of smuggling of fake Indian currency notes, variety of narcotics, cattle and other related crimes, sources said.
The last time the two forces met for the DG-level talks was in Delhi in September, 2018. Issues like measures undertaken to prevent attacks against BSF personnel, joint efforts to prevent transborder crimes, action against Indian insurgent groups (operating from the other side) are part of the agenda for the DGlevel talks, sources said.
“Crucial issues related to border infrastructure, simultaneous co-ordinated patrol in vulnerable areas of the border and mutual sharing of information would also be part of the discussions”, sources said. Relations between the two sides are very good and it is expected that new dimensions will be added to this relationship to effectively guard the 4,096-km frontier shared by the two countries, they added.