By Gautam Debroy
New Delhi: The ongoing border tension between India and Bangladesh remained unresolved despite the Director Generals of BSF and Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) claiming satisfaction over the outcome of the 55th border coordination conference that ended in New Delhi on Thursday.
Critical issues like fencing within 150 yards from the zero line of the border, smuggling of arms and drugs from Bangladesh to India, and movement of insurgents remained inconclusive. BSF Director General Daljit Singh Chawdhary said the objection to border fencing by BGB was a matter to discuss. "The India-Bangladesh border is dynamic. Different kinds of issues keep arising. However, our local officers always try to solve them," Chawdhary said.
Bangladesh has been persistently opposing the construction of a single-row fence within 150 km of the border pillar at Sabdalpur village in the Malda district of West Bengal.
BGB DG Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui said such construction should be "justified". "There should be negotiation before constructing anything within 150 yards from the international border. And such construction should have been properly justified. Here, mutual consultation is very much necessary to construct anything within 150 yards from the zero line,” he said. "Constructions can take place if there is no objection from the other side," the BGB chief said.
Issues Discussed During 55th Border Coordination Talks
The BSF raised issues like prevention against attack, assault and abuse on BSF personnel and Indian civilians by Bangladesh-based criminals and miscreants, joint efforts to prevent trans-border crimes, action against Indian Insurgent Groups (IIGs) in Bangladesh, issues related to border infrastructure, construction of single row fencing (SRF), joint efforts for effective implementation of Coordinated Border Management Plan (CBMP) and Confidence Building Measures (CBM).
The BGB raised issues related to border infrastructure within 150 yards of IB, the establishment of an effluent treatment plant (ETP) for four canals carrying wastewater from Agartala to Akhaura, border demarcation, survey and construction of pillars, construction work within 150 yards of IB, river bank protection works and water sharing, location of camps and movement of armed miscreants inside India and effective implementation of Coordinated Border Management Plan.
Joint Statement Talks Of Amicably Settling Issues
In a joint statement issued after the four-day-long conference, the two forces said that they appreciated each other’s concerns and were committed to settling the issues "amicably through continued, constructive and positive engagements at all levels". They agreed to implement the decisions of the conference at the ground level in "true spirit".
On the incidents of assault and attack on BSF personnel by Bangladesh-based trans-border criminals, both sides, as per the statement, agreed to undertake combined efforts to bring down such incidents to an absolute minimum by increasing coordinated patrols, especially during late hours of night to early morning in vulnerable areas.
Highlighting the importance of a coordinated border management plan in curbing trans-border crimes, human trafficking and illegal crossing, both sides agreed to pursue and share real-time information and investigation reports of traffickers, the statement read.
“Both sides also assured to remain extra vigilant to curb such crimes and to put all-out efforts to make the Indo-Bangladesh border crime-free. Both sides also agreed to help victims of human trafficking and to facilitate their rescue and fastest rehabilitation as per the law of the land,” it added.
The two forces also agreed to hold the next DG-level conference in Dhaka, Bangladesh at a suitable time in July 2025.
The Government Records
Records indicate that despite such high-level talks between BSF and BGB, activities like arms and drug smuggling, and incidents of crime including killings along the border continued unabated.
Government data in possession of ETV Bharat shows that anti-national activities along the India-Bangladesh border continue unabated. The quantity of narcotics seized by BSF along the Indo-Bangla in 2021 was 17528.396 kg which went up to 25,951.671 kg in 2022 and 23600.870 kg in 2023. In 2024, however, the number came down sharply to 11866.788 kg.
Similarly, seizure of Fake Indian Currency Note (FICN) in 2021 was Rs 24.38 lakh, Rs 20.32 lakh in 2022, Rs 28.48 lakh in 2023 and Rs 32.65 lakh in 2024.
As for arms seized by BSF along the India-Bangladesh border, 42 arms and 92 ammunitions were seized in 2021. In 2022, 18 arms and 1596 ammunitions were seized by BSF, 38 arms and 600 ammunitions in 2023 and in 2024, BSF seized 14 arms and 574 ammunitions along the border.
Thousands of gold smugglers were also apprehended on the border with data showing, 4,544 people apprehended in 2022, 3,572 in 2023 and 4,168 in 2024. The quantity of smuggled gold was 163.325 kg in 2023 followed by 172.828 kg in 2024. In addition to gold, BSF also seized 178.805 kg silver from along the India-Bangladesh border in 2024.
As many as 22 miscreants and smugglers were killed in 2024. Asked about it, BSF DG Chawdhary said that the agency has been utilising force multipliers and the latest technology to stop such crimes and smuggling.
India and Bangladesh share a 4,096 km-long border spanning across five states - West Bengal (2,217 km), Tripura (856 km), Meghalaya (443 km), Assam (262 km) and Mizoram (318 km).
History Of Border Co-ordination Conference
The Joint India-Bangladesh guidelines for Border Authorities – 1975 envisage that there should be frequent contact between the border authorities of the two countries to discuss matters of immediate administrative concern.
An Indian delegation under the leadership of Ashwani Kumar, former Director General of BSF and the Bangladesh delegation under the leadership of Major General Quazi Golam Dastgir, former Director General BDR (now BGB) met at Kolkata on December 2, 1975, for the first time to discuss mutual border problems. Since then, the meetings between DG BSF and DG BGB were held annually alternatively in India and Bangladesh till 1993.
During discussions between the Home Secretaries of India and Bangladesh that were held at Dhaka (Bangladesh) from October 7 to 9, 1993, it was agreed that the Director General level meetings between BSF and BGB were to be a bi-annual event. In the agreed summary of discussions during the meeting, it was emphasized that problems in the areas of mutual interests and concerns could be progressively resolved through close contact and continuing meaningful dialogue at various levels. Accordingly, DG BSF and DG BGB have been holding Border Coordination meetings twice a year alternatively at Delhi and Dhaka and joint record of discussions of these meetings are forwarded to the Ministry of Home Affairs after each such meeting.
Impact Of Regime Change In Bangladesh
The last BSF-BGB Border Coordination Conference was held from March 5 to 9, 2024 in Dhaka. However, following the July uprising and change of regime in Bangladesh, the second meeting between BSF and BGB did not take place. The talk was previously scheduled for October 2024.
BSF DG Chawdhary said that after August 5 (following regime change), forces on both sides have been deployed properly to curb infiltration. “Following such joint initiatives, infiltration has gone down,” said Chawdhary.
Referring to the alleged attack on minorities, the BGB director general Siddiqui said that the attack on minorities was an "exaggeration" in the media. “Such attack did not happen. In fact, the Hindus in Bangladesh celebrated Durga puja. The law enforcing agencies have been tasked to ensure the safety of minorities. The clashes were related to politics,” Siddiqui said.
Former BSF DG Speaks
Talking to ETV Bharat, former director general of BSF, Prakash Singh said that such high-level talks are always beneficial. However, he said, it depends on the intentions of the officials taking part in such a talk process and the leadership of the two countries.
“It’s a fact that anti-national activities are still going on. If there is no political will and direction from the top leadership, such crimes will continue unabated,” said Singh.
