Fencing work at centre of B’desh row began in Apr ’24
Times of India | 14 January 2025
123 Kolkata: In the backdrop of the standoff between BSF and BGB at the Malda border that has now snowballed into a diplomatic rift, TOI has learnt that the fencing work began in April 2024. Things remained uneventful for months till problems erupted in Nov — after the regime change in Bangladesh.
"The fencing work at Sukhdevpur-Sabdalpur village in Malda's Baishnabnagar started in April last year following established procedure, which also involve Border Guard Bangladesh. BGB, through multiple intimations, communicated their agreement and had no objection when the work began," said a senior officer of BSF South Bengal Frontier.
According to border guidelines, any permanent construction within 150 yards of the zero line is restricted by both countries. If any temporary construction has to happen within this territory, there is an established process, and mutual agreement involving both stakeholders is necessary.
"Work continued seamlessly till July, and then BSF temporarily put things on hold during monsoon. When the force tried to resume fencing in Nov, BGB objected after four days. After lower-level talks, operations were put on hold for a few days, hoping that our counterpart would be able to see things in the correct perspective," said the officer.
The senior officer said BSF resumed work last week, after waiting for a considerable time. "But there was opposition again from BGB, and despite flag meetings where we reminded them about their commitments and past permissions, they refused to let us start work. We ultimately had to stop again to avoid escalating tension," the officer said.
Bengal has a 2,216 km boundary with Bangladesh, 50% of which remains unfenced, making it vulnerable to illicit cross-border activities. The current dispute is over attempts to put barriers along 1,200m in Baishnabnagar village.
The fencing would be in mutual interest as it would help curb trans-border crimes and illegal infiltration.
The BSF officer said the force was dealing with the issue courteously and exploring all options, but had escalated the matter to the ministry of foreign affairs. "Their objection is not justified," the officer said.