Indo-Pak border to be completely sealed by December 2018: Rajnath Singh

[Hindustani78]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...f-fayazs-killers-released/article18440186.ece

Three Hizb militants had abducted and murdered the Army officer who had come home on leave
The police on Friday released the pictures of three local militants, who belong to the Hizbul Mujahideen and were involved in the abduction and killing of Army officer Lt. Ummer Fayaz on Tuesday.

The posters pasted in Shopian district, where the killing took place, identified the militants as Ishafaq Thokar, Gayas-ul-Islam, both residents of Padderpora, and Abbas Bhat, a resident of Mantribugh. All the militants, who belong to the Hizb, are active in the district.

“Any person providing information on the criminals will be suitably rewarded and his identity will be kept secret,” reads the poster issued by the Shopian police.

Bhat, who apparently led the group, was held in 2011 on the charge of murdering a local doctor and was released on bail last year in April. He knew the Army officer for quite some time, reveal the police investigation.

The police have registered a case in the Army officer’s killing under Sector 302 (murder) and 364 (kidnapping or abducting in order to murder) of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC).

Lt. Fayaz, a resident of Kulgam, was abducted on Tuesday night from a wedding function in adjacent Shopian district. On Wednesday morning, the body of the officer with bullet wounds was found by a road.

Facing rare public outrage, the United Jihad Council (UJC), a Pakistan-based conglomerate of militant outfits including the Hizbul Mujahideen, on Friday said that its militants were not involved in the killing.

Parts of Kashmir Valley remained tense on Friday as sporadic protests erupted. A spontaneous shutdown was also observed in Pulwam and Shopian. Traders in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district called a two-day shutdown. They alleged the security forces vandalised their merchandise during the student protests recently. All shops and business centres remained closed due to the shutdown call.

A shutdown was also observed in Shopian against the ‘disappearance’ of a local youth, Zubair Ahmad Turray. However, the police said Turray escaped from the police station in Keegam on May 1. He had been arrested in 2015 on stone-pelting charges and slapped with the Public Safety Act (PSA).

Meanwhile, protesters hurled stones at security forces after Friday prayers at Srinagar’s Nowhatta, Baramulla’s Sopore, Bandipora’s Hajin and Shopian town. Security forces used tear-smoke shells to contain the situation.

BSF jawan injured

One Border Security Force (BSF) jawan was injured as Pakistani troops violated ceasefire again and fired on BSF personnel on the International Border (IB) in Jammu’s Arnia sector on Friday morning.

On Wednesday night, one woman was killed and two civilians injured in Pakistan firing in Rajouri district.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://indianexpress.com/article/in...ni-forces-in-nowshera-sector-rajouri-4653563/

Two civilians, including a 14-year-old girl, were killed and five others injured as Pakistani troops resorted to 120 mm and 80 mm mortar shelling at various places along the Line of Control in Nowshera sector on Saturday morning. Four army soldiers and a civilian woman were among the injured.

Identifying the deceased as Tufail Hussain, 50, and Afiya, 14, sources said that mortar shells were falling in Baba Khori, Kalsiyan, Jhanghar, Makri and Tarya areas. Tufail’s wife Jaitoon Begum was injured. The couple were sitting outside their house in Jhanghar area when a mortar shell fell nearby. Afiya hailed from Mendhar and she had come to the house of her relatives in the area.

The mortar shelling by Pakistan started around 7.15 am. The firing in the area has re-started after a lull of nearly 48 hours as Pakistani troops had earlier resorted to shelling in Laam area of Nowshera on Wednesday night.

Lt Colonel Manish Mehta, a defence ministry spokesperson said that “the Indian troops were retaliating strongly and effectively. The firing is presently on”.

The escalation of tension along the LoC had led to migration of people from various places to safer areas. Only yesterday, a BSF jawan was injured in unprovoked small arms firing and mortar shelling by Pakistani Rangers along the international border in Arnia sector of Samba district.

 

[Hindustani78]

People take shelter in a bunker following shelling at Nowshera sector of Rajouri district on Saturday. PTI

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The army is not returning to the cordon-and-search type of operations that were employed in the 1990s to hunt down terrorists in Kashmir.

Rather, the troops have been conducting only search operations to flush out militants from populated areas. Great care is being taken not to alienate the locals as earlier search and cordon methods had led to large-scale hardships, officials said.

Recent reports said nearly 4,000 soldiers of the Rashtriya Rifles were involved in security operations in 15 villages of Shopian district in south Kashmir from May 4. The army’s new approach will focus on smoking out militants holed up in villages in south Kashmir and forcing them to flee into the forests.

As public protests have made security operations in heavily inhabited villages difficult, the army sees greater chances of success from counter-terror operations in forests — if the militants are forced to move out of the houses. With a weakened intelligence network, the army is gearing up for the possibility of terrorist groups attacking the Amarnath Yatra, scheduled to be held between June 29 and August 7.

“Our job is to separate terrorists from the Kashmiri people, and target the terrorists,” Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said in an interview to a daily. “We are not returning to classical cordon-and-search operations in Kashmir because we know they cause hardship to local people,” he said.

“These are area search operations. It is not even a cordon,” Rawat said.Rawat refuted the view that the army is against all Kashmiris and treats them as militants. “We understand that all Kashmiris are not involved in the so-called militancy. There are a few, select in number, who indulge in terror and violence,” he said during the interview.

This is in contrast to his remarks three months ago that all stone-pelters in Kashmir would be treated as ‘aides of jihadis’.

The army sees the killing of Kashmiri officer Lieutenant Ummer Fayaz, who was kidnapped and killed by militants in Shopian district on Tuesday, as a watershed moment.

It has given the army an opportunity to convey to locals that militants do not spare even their own officers.

“The officer was a role model for all young Kashmiris. The way things are, this action has taken Kashmiris back, while Lt Fayaz was taking it forward. He was encouraging young people to join the force, which the whole country is proud of,” Rawat said.

“These people are discouraging Kashmiris from availing job opportunities, while thousands of people line up for police recruitment. How can they explain this dichotomy? This act (Lt Fayaz’s murder) should be condemned by all Kashmiris,” he said.

Written by Muzamil Jaleel , Rahul Tripathi | New Delhi/srinagar | Updated: May 14, 2017 4:49 am

At a bunker near Bhawani village in Nowshera sector along the Line of Control on Saturday. (Source: AP)

With infiltration from across the border and Line of Control likely to spike with the onset of summer, the security establishment is learnt to have conveyed to the Centre that imposition of Governor’s Rule could make it easier to contain extremist elements in Jammu and Kashmir, and help improve the overall security situation in the Valley.

The security establishment in the state has been worried about the homegrown militancy in South Kashmir, which has traditionally been a stronghold of the ruling PDP. Several instances of the snatching of weapons have been reported in this area, and videos and pictures have surfaced showing militants in groups of 30 or more.

Senior PDP leader, Public Works Minister and official spokesman of the J&K government, Nayeem Akhtar, told The Sunday Express that the government “has not been informed” about any move to impose Governor’s Rule on the state. “But whenever they (New Delhi) want to impose central rule, they can do that,” Akhtar said.

He said that “if it (Governor’s Rule) happens, it will not be the first time that Governor’s Rule is imposed in J&K”.

The security establishment would want some of the leaders of stone-pelting groups of protesters to be sent to prisons outside the Kashmir Valley, if not outside the state, official sources said.
The security establishment also believes the alliance between the PDP and BJP is one of the causes of Kashmiri anger. “If there is Governor’s Rule, it will at least take this one factor out of the equation. Other factors will remain, though,” a top security official told The Sunday Express.

Akhtar, however, said “such a measure” (imposing Governor’s Rule) hasn’t worked earlier”. An “exclusively military approach cannot provide any solution because we are dealing with people here”, he said. “It (the situation) can be only resolved with a sympathetic outreach which is the core theme of the agenda of (PDP-BJP) alliance.”

He said “nothing could be expected in the absence of an inclusive approach laced with humanitarian feelings and political outreach”.

“Of course, those who swear by the gun alone can be neutralised only through strong measures,” Akhtar said. “The real challenge is to seek the involvement of people in doing so, and to make militancy irrelevant and democracy the preferred option,” he said.

J&K has its own Constitution, and Governor’s Rule is imposed on the state for a period of six months in case of failure of the constitutional machinery, under Section 92 of the state Constitution. The proclamation is issued by the Governor after receiving the consent of the President of India. The state Assembly can be either dissolved or kept in suspended animation. If it is not possible to restore the constitutional machinery within six months, the provisions of Article 356 of the Constitution of India are extended to J&K, and President’s Rule is imposed.

J&K Governor N N Vohra met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on May 5. Vohra has been governor of the state since 2008, and the state has seen three spells of Governor’s Rule in his tenure.

There has been a sharp increase in the number of attacks on security forces in the Valley in recent months. The abduction and killing of 22-year-old Lt Ummer Fayyaz in Shopian on Tuesday had been described as a “watershed moment” by the Army.

 

[Hindustani78]

Army soldiers take position during an operation against militants in Shopian district, south of Srinagar, on May 4, 2017. The army said they were alerted to the presence of at least 100 militants in the area and have been on alert.(Waseem Andrabi/HT File Photo)
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india...peration-on/story-QpIkqfcMX3YhF2q61CoeKL.html


Two foreign militants were killed in a brief encounter with security forces in north Kashmir’s Handwara on Sunday, police said. The firefight took place around 4 pm.

Officials said that a joint party of police and army’s 21 Rashtriya Rifles launched a search operation after inputs about presence of militants in Waripora village of Handwara, some 75 km from Srinagar.

Police control room Handwara said that the militants who were cornered in an orchard, just meters away from the populated area in Waripora, opened fire on the security forces who then retaliated.

“Two militants were killed in the operation,” said Ghulam Jeelani, superintendent of police, Handwara.

Jeelani said that they were lucky to trap the militants 100 meters away from the village which prevented any chances of untoward incidents among the villagers. “Both the militants are foreigners. We are trying to ascertain their identity. Since Lashkar-e-Taiba is active in the region, we suspect the militants are from the same outfit,” he said.

An army spokesman said that two weapons were also recovered from the spot.

Earlier during the day, a civilian who was wounded during a militant attack on a police party on May 6 in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district succumbed to his injuries. The death toll in that incident has now risen to six.

A police spokesman said that Mohammad Hussain Dar, a resident of Takia Malpora in Kulgam district, died at the Sher-i- Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences in Srinagar where he was admitted since the attack.

“The body of the deceased has been sent to his native village,” the spokesman said.

Dar was injured after militants attacked a police party on its way to clear traffic after a road accident at Mir Bazar area in Anantnag district on the national highway. The exchange of fire left a policeman, three other civilians and a militant dead.
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http://www.hindustantimes.com/india...ml?li_source=LI&li_medium=recommended-for-you

Militants opened fire at security forces in a village in Tral township of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Saturday, police said. A cordon and search operation was launched to nab them.

The security forces were patrolling Seer village when the militants opened fire at them, triggering a brief gunfight, a police official said.

Militants fired at a team of security forces in Tral in Kashmir (ANI Twitter)
There was no immediate report of any casualty, he said, adding that a cordon and search operation has been launched to track them.

Militants fired at a team of security forces in Tral in Kashmir (ANI Twitter)
Reinforcements have been rushed to seal the escape routes, the official said, adding that there was no fresh contact with the militants and efforts are on to flush them out.

Earlier in the day, at least two civilians were killed and seven persons, including four Indian Army personnel, were injured in heavy cross-border shelling by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district, officials said.

This was the third ceasefire violation along the India-Pakistan border in Jammu and Kashmir in past three days.

Four soldiers of the Indian Army’s 48 Rashtriya Rifles suffered injuries in the exchange of fire, and were taken to a garrison hospital, said an intelligence source.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india...ml?li_source=LI&li_medium=recommended-for-you

The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday claimed to have busted a module of terror outfit Lashkar-e- Toiba (LeT), which had been trying to revive militancy in the Chenab valley, with the arrest of seven persons, including a special police officer (SPO) and a former Territorial Army personnel.

The module was working to revive militancy in the Doda- Kishtwar-Ramban region of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

It added that with these arrests, it has also cracked the May 8 attack on a police post in Doda district.

Two special police officers—Mohammed Younis and Kikkar Singh—were injured in the said attack. While Mohammed Younis succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday, Kikkar Singh is being treated at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh.

Inspector general of police (IGP), Jammu Zone, SDS Jamwal said, “After the attack on the Tanta police post in Gandoh area of Doda, a special investigation team (SIT) was constituted which visited the spot and conducted a preliminary investigation.”

Giving details, he said that acting on intelligence inputs the SIT picked up some suspects for questioning. Based on the information received from them, one Abdul Rashid Harga alias Abdullah, a resident of Tanta, was held. The IGP added that Abdul Rashid was an active LeT militant from 2001 through 2008, and had later surrendered. “Abdul Rashid was rearrested in 2013 and later bailed out in 2016. After sustained interrogation, he confessed his involvement in the attack and also disclosed name of his two associates: his younger brother Shoket Ali and Akthar Magary, a resident of Tanta,” the IGP said.

Following their interrogation, four more persons -- Bashir Ahmed, who was earlier part of Territorial Army, his nephew and SPO Altaf Ahmed, Shafqat Hussain and Hafiz -- were also arrested.

“An AK-47 rifle, three magazines and ammunition have been recovered from them,” the IGP said. “Abdul Rashid was in contact with one Bashir Ahmed, of Bangraw in Gandoh. Bashir Ahmed was earlier in the Territorial Army,” Jamwal said, and added “Bashir Ahmed has a nephew, Altaf Ahmed, who is a special police officer (SPO) in the J&K Police in Doda district. Bashir had asked Altaf to arrange a weapon for him and Altaf stole one AK-47 rifle, along with ammunition, from the district police line Doda in January 2017.”

According to the IGP, Altaf then handed over the weapon to Bashir Ahmed, who was in contact with Abdul Rashid Harga. On realising that the weapon given by Altaf belongs to the J&K Police, Bashir Ahmed asked Abdul Rashid to help him replace it with a similar weapon of any militant. The IGP further said that Abdul Rashid was in direct touch with his “Pakistani handler” Mohammad Amin alias Khubeb alias Haroon alias Pinna of the LeT. Furthermore, following the direction of Khubeb and other militant leaders from the Valley, Abdul Rashid, Akhter and Shokat had been enticing the youths of Tanta to join militancy.

On May 7, Abdul Rashid reportedly inspected areas around the Tanta police post and found that only two or three cops guard it. He then informed his associates about it and on the intervening night of May 7 and 8, they attacked the said post, injuring the two SPOs.

“Following the attack, they tried to set the post on fire. However, due to the quick reaction of the injured SPOs they fled,” said the IGP.

The police officer added that Rashid had been regularly conducting meetings in various areas of the Chenab Valley and motivating former militants and those who had surrendered to join militancy.

(With PTI inputs)

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/611630/suspected-hizbul-ultra-nabbed.html
New Delhi, DH News Service, May 15 2017, 1:34 IST

Villagers living near the border point at the damage caused to the wall of a house after mortar shelling from Pakistan, at Jhanghar village near the Line of Control at Nowshera sector in Jammu on Sunday. PTI

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A suspected Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist, who was staying in Pakistan for the past 14 years, was arrested on the Indo-Nepal border while trying to sneak into India for carrying out a “specific mission”, officials said on Sunday.

Naseer Ahmed (34), who hails from Ramban in Jammu and Kashmir, was apprehended by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) at Sanauli in Uttar Pradesh from the border at 5.15 pm on Saturday.

“He was trying to sneak into India from Nepal in the guise of a Kashmiri shawl and carpet vendor. When he was asked for his identity by SSB personnel at Sanauli, he was unable to produce any supporting documents,” a SSB spokesperson said.

Following this, a physical search was conducted, and a Pakistani passport and an identity card bearing a Pakistani address were recovered. “He was involved in many violent attacks against civilians and security forces, including an attack on the STF camp. He was sent to India by his handler, on a specific mission,” the spokesperson said.

Ahmed had landed in Kathmandu from Pakistan’s Faislabad via Sharjah on May 10 along with one Mohd Shafi. Shafi did not accompany him as Ahmed boarded a bus to reach the Indo-Nepal border. The spokesperson said that Ahmed was in touch with a handler in India, who used to deposit money in his bank account.

According to security officials, Ahmed was involved in terrorist activities in Banihal area of Ramban since 2002. The next year, he crossed over to Pakistan with a group of 23 people.

Trained by ISI
In Pakistan, he was trained by the terrorists and ISI officials, they said. “He was trained to operate weapons such as AK-47, AK-56, SLR, Rocket Launcher (RPG7), Assault Rifle (G3 and G2), grenades, etc. After completion of training, he stayed at various Hizbul camps in Abbotabad during 2004-2006 and Manshera (2006-09).

“He said that he used to preach Quran to HuM cadres during his stay at various camps,” the SSB spokesperson said.

Pakistani wife
He also married a Pakistani national in November 2009 and the couple has two sons. He also started a hosiery business in Gujrat district of Pakistan.

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http://www.deccanherald.com/content/611655/pakistani-intruder-shot-dead.html


Press Trust of India, Amritsar, May 15 2017, 9:43 IST

An intruder from Pakistan was shot dead by the Border Security Force early today in Bariyala in Gurdaspur Sector.

BSF personnel spotted some suspicious movement near the fence along the Indo-Pak border, a BSF official said.

He said despite repeated warning by the BSF personnel the intruder kept on marching towards the Indian side after which the troops opened fire at him.

The official said that the area where the incident took place is surrounded by the Ravi River from three sides.

Asked if any recovery has been made from the spot where the intruder was shot dead, he said the search operation in the area was under progress.

A civilian inspects a damaged building by mortar shells at Jhanghar village in Nowshera. Villagers along India-Pakistan border in Jammu and Kashmir are suffering the brunt of cross-border firing with the neighbouring countries continuing to violate ceasefire agreement. (Nitin Kanotra / HT Photo)

A lady points at smoke caused by firing of mortar shells from the Pakistan side of the border.

Pakistani forces have indulged in several truce violations along the LoC in recent

times.

Intense shelling by the Pakistani army has forced several families from Jhangar and Bhawani areas to move to temporary shelters set up at a government higher secondary school in Rajouri district and other safer places on their own.

At least two civilians, including a minor girl, were killed as Pakistan pounded 35 villages and Indian posts with mortars.

Jhangar villagers take their belongings with them while moving to safer places following cross-border firing in Nowshera.

Shelling by the Pakistan forced the evacuation of nearly 1,000 border dwellers, following which Indian troops retaliated.

A child sleeps at a relief camp set up at a government school in Nowshera.

This was the fourth ceasefire violation by Pakistan in four days and the second in Rajouri district in two days.

Evacuated villagers seen at a relief camp set up at a government school, along the highly militarized Line of Control that divides the region between India and Pakistan in Nowshera.

Firing by Pakistani army has damaged houses along the border villages in Nowshera.

Jhangar Khamba village, where Pakistani shelling snuffed out two lives, reflected a grim picture of death and destruction. The village is barely 2.5 km from the LoC.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://zeenews.india.com/india/arun...urity-situation-in-jammu-kashmir-2005906.html

New Delhi: Defence Minister Arun Jaitley and Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat would be in the Kashmir valley where they would review the security situation, amid a spike in militant attacks and incidents of violence, officials said on Tuesday.

Jaitley, who also holds the finance portfolio, will be in Srinagar primarily for the two-day meeting of the GST (Goods and Services Tax) Council on May 18 and 19.

However, he is also likely to review the security situation in the restive valley region and take stock of counter-terror operations, they said.

Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat is leaving for Kashmir tomorrow where he would be briefed by top Army commanders about incidents of cross-border firing and ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops.

It was not immediately known if the two would review the ground situation together or separately.

Jaitley and Rawat's Kashmir visit comes in the wake of beheading of two Indian security personnel by Pakistani military in Poonch district earlier this month which was termed "barbaric" by India.

While Rawat hinted at retaliation to avenge the killings, Jaitley had said the sacrifice of the two soldiers will not go in vain and that the armed forces will react "appropriately".

The Kashmir valley has witnessed a spurt in incidents of violence and militant attacks in the last couple of months.

The Pakistani troops were involved in 67 ceasefire violations in the first four months of 2017, with maximum of 26 incidents reported in April, according to Army sources.

They said a total of 27 militants were killed between January and April in counter-insurgency operations.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/army-stops-search/article18468871.ece

Army stops search

Srinagar, May 16, 2017 22:04 IST
Updated: May 16, 2017 22:04 IST
The Army resorted to aerial firing to disperse scores of protesting women in south Kashmir’s Kulgam on Tuesday. Locals said the Army launched a major search operation around 6 a.m. and asked people above the age of 10 to come out their homes. However, women started clashing with the security forces when some civilians were being allegedly thrashed. The incident took place at Okey village. Later, the operation was called off.

Meanwhile students clashed with security forces in Srinagar and Baramulla districts, leaving several injured.

A major face-off was reported in Baramulla’s Pattan where students of a government school held a demonstration. A clash erupted as students tried to march towards the town square. Scores of students, besides one policeman, were injured as security forces hurled tear-smoke shells. One student was allegedly hit by pellets.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...ges-threat-from-militants/article18470440.ece

Close on the heels of the killing of Lt. Ummer Fayaz in the Kashmir Valley, a BSF assistant commandant from Jammu, who had topped the recruitment exam, has written to the government alleging that militants were threatening him and his sister.

Nabeel Ahmed Wani, the topper of the All India Examination for BSF Assistant Commandant (Works) last year, said his sister, a civil engineering student in Chandigarh, had been staying in a hostel but the college authorities now want her to move elsewhere.

Mr. Wani wrote to Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi on Sunday (May 14) asking her to arrange for hostel facility for Nida Rafiq.

“She was worried that she would not get a place to stay as a Kashmiri, especially with my background. I didn’t want to involve the BSF in a personal matter, so I wrote to the Minister,” Mr. Wani told PTI over phone from the BSF Training Academy a Tekanpur near Gwalior.

Request for arms

Mr. Wani said he has spoken to his seniors in the BSF requesting them to allow personnel to carry their arms when they go on leave, especially in militant-affected areas, and also to secure their travel plans home.

He said he will go home for his cousin’s wedding in next two months.

“People like me and my family members are always under threat from militants. After the murder of Lt Ummer Fayaz, I am scared about my family’s security. My mother lives alone in Jammu while my sister is in Chandigarh. I worry, especially now, as terrorists are targeting our families,” said Mr. Wani.

He topped the exam last year around the time the Valley was on the boil following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Burhan Wani.

He had written the mail to Ms. Gandhi on May 14 and got a response the very next day. “The Minister immediately took it up with the college authorities, who have now allowed Mr. Nabeel’s sister to stay in the hostel,” a senior official of the WCD Ministry said.

Disturbing trend

Mr. Wani said: “I am now worried for all those Kashmiris who are serving in the Army or paramilitary forces. We (Kashmiris) join the forces despite a lot of opposition and now, with this trend of killing Kashmiris serving as soldiers, a sword hangs on all of us. This is very disturbing.”

As for his sister, he is now comforted she will remain safe in the security of her hostel room. “She is safe for now. Pray for her, she wants to become the first woman from Jammu and Kashmir to serve the Indian Army,” he said.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Home Affairs
17-September, 2018 17:00 IST
Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurates smart fencing project along International Border in J&K

Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurated two pilot projects of smart fencing along the Indo-Pak International Border in Jammu today.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Rajnath Singh said that government has taken a number of initiatives to make the borders of the country more secure. He said that the Centre has been making maximum use of technology to make the security system at the borders stronger and effective. The Minister said that smart fencing at the borders is a technological solution devised to address the security issues in the border states and the two projects in five kilometres areas each have been installed along the Indo-Pak International Border in Jammu on a pilot basis.

He said that with this smart fencing, the number of casualties of our jawans on borders would get minimised and the stress level among the jawans would also reduce to a large extent.


The Union Home Minister further added that with the digital smart fencing, our borders would become absolutely safe since it would virtually make it impossible for the terrorists to breach it and infiltrate across the borders.

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, Director General, Border Security Force, Shri K.K. Sharma and other senior officers were present on the occasion.

Later, addressing the media, Shri Rajnath Singh said that making border security foolproof is a priority of the Government. Around a total of 2,026 km border is vulnerable and that the digital fencing technology would be utilised along such long stretches of the borders, he added. The Minister said that with the help of smart border fencing, our borders would become secure and the dependence on ground patrolling by troops will considerably be reduced.

The smart border fencing projects built under the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) programme is the first of its kind in the country. The two projects each covering a 5.5 km border stretch along the International Border have got hitech surveillance system that would create an invisible electronic barrier on land, water and even in air and underground and would help the BSF detect and foil infiltration bids in most difficult terrains. The CIBMS is designed to guard stretches where physical surveillance is not possible either due to inhospitable terrain or riverine borders.

CIBMS uses a number of different devices for surveillance, communication and data storage. Sensors like Thermal Imager, UGS, Fiber Optical Sensors, Radar, Sonar have been mounted on different platforms like Aerostat, tower, poles etc. A comprehensive integration of such sensors and other technical systems of communication and data processing have been achieved in the CIBMS project. The signals reach the Unified Command and Control Centre where the BSF can monitor the border on real-time basis. The CIBMS enables round-the-clock surveillance on border and under different weather conditions be it in dust storm, fog or rain.

Duing his visit to Jammu, the Home Minister also participated in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and administered Swachhta pledge to BSF officers, jawans and officers.


*****

The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh lighting the lamp to inaugurate the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) Project, in Jammu on September 17, 2018. The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh and the Director General, Border Security Force, Shri K.K. Sharma are also seen.

The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh interacting with the BSF officers and Jawans, during the Sainik Sammelan, at BSF Headquarters, in Jammu on September 17, 2018.

The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh addressing the media after inauguration of the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) Project, in Jammu on September 17, 2018. The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh is also seen.

The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh with the BSF officers and Jawans, during his visit to Jammu on September 17, 2018. The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh and the Director General, Border Security Force, Shri K.K. Sharma are also seen.