As the thick fog descends on the international border with Pakistan in Punjab, the Pakistan-based narco-terrorists have upped their activities to infiltrate intruders and smuggle heroin into India hoping to make successful bids taking benefit of a thick blanket of fog.
Besides, there are reports of drone sorties from across the border following which the Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Zone Police have launched search operations in various places on the international border with Pakistan in Punjab to rule out the possibility of dropping of arms, ammunition or the drugs in the Indian territory.
However, the killing of two intruders by BSF in the Amritsar sector and foiling another two smuggling attempts in a single night only proves the alertness of troops on the border despite foggy and chilling nights.
On Thursday, BSF Deputy Inspector General Bhupinder Singh informed that BSF shot dead two Pakistani armed intruders who were carrying AK 56 rifle, Magnum rifle, Olympia marked pistol and ammunition.
It is believed that Pakistan’s ISI backed narco-terrorists had planned to send intruders into India taking advantage of inclement weather.
Though the BSF has lodged a formal protest with Pakistani Rangers and had shown them the photographs of slain intruders since they crawled into Indian territory from Pakistan side but, going by the sources, Pak Rangers has denied any attempt from their side- a routine answer to shrug off any responsibility.
Barely a kilometre from the site of the killing of two Pakistani intruders, the BSF also foiled another smuggling attempt and yet another smuggling attempt made in the area of jurisdiction of Ramkot Border out Post of BSF in Amritsar sector. Despite near-zero visibly, the BSF takes pride in foiling three major cross border attempts in a single night.
The BSF officials don’t rule out the possibility of arms and drugs dropping by drones by Pakistani narco-terrorists as they have already done in past.
Despite the installation o electronic surveillance gadgets, the force has increased its manpower along the international border with Pakistan during the foggy days to neutralize any such cross border misadventure.
It’s observed that Pak based drug smugglers or the militant organisations make their attempts on foggy days which are considered as a favourable time for smuggling and making intrusion bids.
In the recent past, Punjab Director General of Police Dinkar Gupta had informed that police had arrested two persons Lakhbir Singh and Bachittar Singh, and recovered drones, transmitters and other equipment from their possession. They had procured drones from Delhi for flying them across the border and smuggle drugs or arms.
“This was something little known that Indian smugglers could also fly drones to Pakistan to bring back the contrabands but it has alerted as since these GPS fitted drones could be operated from any side” says a BSF official who didn’t wish to give the name.
Notably, the BSF had in the recent past foiled several attempts of Pakistan-based narco-terrorists to drop arms, ammunition, and drugs into the Indian territory and forced their operators in Pakistan to fly drones from Indian skies after BSF opened fire on Pak drones.
Border Zone Inspector General of Police SPS Parmar said police carried out several search operations along with BSF after Pak drones were spotted in India.
As a standard operating procedure, the villages over which drones are spotted are cordoned off and search operation is carried out by BSF and a team of police’s second line of defence which was created after the Pathankot Air Force station attack.
