Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal asked the National Buildings Construction Corporation (India) Limited (NBCC) and Central Public Works Department (CPWD) to seal 48.11 km-long the porous stretch of Indo-Bangla border on a war footing during a high level meeting in New Delhi on Friday.
He also asked the Border Security Force (BSF) to use efficient and tested technology to intensify its vigil and put a spanner on illegal migration and smuggling cross the border, an official source said here.
Sonowal said, “Fencing of the unfenced stretches of Indo-Bangla border would lead to ‘complete sealing of the border between the two geographical entities and it will also stop illegal movements from across the border”.
The officials of the NBCC and the CPWD pointed out that of the 48.11 km unfenced border between Assam and Bangladesh, fencing of 13.38 km would be completed as soon as the flood water recedes. However, erecting fence on the remaining areas involves enormous challenges as nearly 3-km stretch particularly in Silchar sector is full with deep gorges. It may be noted that Silchar sector has 61 gaps, Dhubri 31 and others 2 and altogether Rs.26.92 crore is required to plug these gaps.
Sonowal asked the NBCC and CPWD to start the fencing work right from October so that the whole process can be completed before the onset of the next monsoon. The construction agencies also informed that there were no issue regarding land acquisition which would help them to complete the fencing work within the stipulated time.
The chef minister asked the BSF to use tested technology to efficiently guard Indo-Bangla border and check all illegal movements across the border. The BSF informed it had equipped itself with the latest technological solutions developed by IIT Delhi, DRDO and Ministry of Information and Technology for the purpose of efficient guarding of frontiers under its jurisdiction.
The CM urged the BSF to use their manpower besides deploying equipment like camera, radar, sensor, fibre optic, etc., for a fool proof vigilance on the entire stretch of Indo-Bangla border that Assam.
Sonowal also suggested that the proposed 30-km long Phulbari bridge over the Brahmaputra River connecting Dhubri with South Salmara should also be equipped with this technological solution to help the bridge bolster security along the border with Bangladesh.