The Assam Government on Wednesday, July 22, informed the State Assembly that 228.541 kilometres of the state’s 267.5-km-long India-Bangladesh international border had been secured with barbed wire fencing, while 38.959 km remained unfenced due to difficult riverine terrain and objections from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).
Replying to an unstarred question by MLA Baby Begum, Border Protection and Development Minister Atul Bora said the international border with Bangladesh passed through Dhubri, South Salmara-Mankachar, Cachar and Sribhumi districts.
Of the remaining unfenced stretch, 34.609 km lies in riverine areas of Dhubri and South Salmara-Mankachar, where geographical conditions have made the construction of barbed wire fencing difficult. The remaining 4.35 km along the Kushiyara River in Sribhumi district has not been fenced due to objections from the BGB, as Indian habitations are located along the border in the area.
Bora told the House that the responsibility for fencing and securing the remaining portions of the international border rested with the Central Government under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
He said the Border Security Force had deployed the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System and established boat observation posts in vulnerable areas where physical fencing was not feasible. The BSF was also maintaining round-the-clock surveillance through observation posts, vehicle and motorboat patrols, CCTV cameras, pan-tilt-zoom cameras and Water Wing operations.
The minister further said BSF personnel continued to conduct regular patrols along the 4.35-km unfenced stretch of the Kushiyara River in Sribhumi district to maintain effective border security.
Responding to a question on whether the Assam Government would urge the Centre to ensure 100 per cent fencing along the India-Bangladesh border in Assam and other border states, Bora said the matter was under consideration. He reiterated that border fencing fell under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.
