The Rann of Kutch could well have become the Siachen of the West for Border Security Force (BSF) jawans who are battling hostile conditions and terrains there.

Like troops on the Siachen glacier, the BSF men in the Rann of Kutch too have little contact with their families and grapple with extreme weather. They say a stint in the salt wasteland lashed by strong winds is one of the toughest assignments they have to contend with.

‘Slow poison’
A jawan stationed at a border outpost, for whom even taking a bath is a luxury, said: “This is like slow poison. Life in jail is better than this.

“There is no water supply here for weeks. The quality of food is bad.” he said.

The difficulties associated with accessing the remote border outposts aggravate their woes.

During rains, the link road across the Rann gets submerged, cutting off the supply of rations, the troops said.

Adverse conditions
Explaining the impact of the adverse conditions on their health, a jawan said, “There is lot of salt in the air, which is bad for our eyes.”

To make matters worse, it is difficult for the Border Security Forcemen to establish contact with their loved ones.
“We speak to our families once in 20 days. The nearest STD facility is about 50 km away. We go there by turns,” said a jawan at an outpost near the frontier.

The range near the border has been reserved for the BSF’s official communication systems. Besides, there is no mobile signal in the Rann, the jawans pointed out.

DIG Brig N D Prasad told PTI that he hoped there would be mobile connectivity here soon.

Such issues further complicate the problems for troops deployed at the border and negate the paramilitary force’s claims of taking adequate measures for the welfare of its men.

The jawans reason that such conditions made the men desperate to complete their 20 years in service so that they could avail  their pension benefits then.