Floods breach Indo-Bangla border fence in Assam

The serious floods this year has not only turned fatal for humans and animals in Assam but has damaged a stretch of its border with neighbouring Bangladesh, exposing it to illegal migrants, cattle and drug smugglers.

Official sources told DH that about 170-meter fencing at Asmer Alga under Sisumara border outpost was washed away by the surging floodwater in Mankachar in western Assam. A portion of the border road along the fence was also breached by strong currents of the surging water from the Brahmaputra.

"The water rose so high and current was so strong that two border outposts of the BSF had to be shifted for safety. The situation has become such that a stretch of the river has been divided into three separate streams and one can reach the border outpost only by boat. But BSF and border police personnel are keeping constant vigil on the border to prevent possible misuse of the breached stretch," said the official.

The source said special director general of Assam police (border), Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta visited the area and took stock of the situation. He will send a detailed report to the ministry of home affairs soon for immediate repair of the damaged portion of the border.

Illegal migration from Bangladesh is a serious issue in Assam, as nearly 36-km of the 263-km border is riverine and a water border and has remained unfenced. Apart from illegal migration, the water border is used by criminals to smuggle cattle, drugs and other items from India to Bangladesh.

Nine Bangladeshis to be deported

Nine Bangladeshi citizens, who were arrested for illegally entering Assam, were on Tuesday taken to Karimganj district in South Assam, situated close to the border and will be deported soon.

They were lodged in Tezpur and Dhemaji jails and had spent their jail terms sentenced under the Foreigners Act of 1946.

"They are willing to go back to their homes and so we had send their details, including their addresses with Bangladesh authorities for verification. Everything has been done and we are waiting for the Bangladesh authorities to accept them at the border," said a police official here.