Barbed wires: Fencing off border and fear

May 6: If you thought flood and erosion were the only problems the people living in the border areas were facing, it is time you added a third — lack of security — brought about by lack of fencing.

Nearly 1.5 lakh people living in nine gaon panchayats located on the extreme southwest are not only threatened by perennial floods and erosion but also live in fear because of the absence of barbed wires along the Indo-Bangladesh border.

There are 127 primary, middle English and high schools, 123 Anganvadi centres, 10 BSF camps, nine gaon panchayat offices, 11 public health centres, 50 siksha mitra centres under the Sarba Shiksha Abhijan and four markets in these gaon panchayats. Besides, there are four markets in these places.

Solaiman Hoque, president of Char Unnayan Parishad, an organisation demanding measures against erosion, said the Brahmaputra’s tributaries also cause considerable damage to crops and homes.

The president of the Parishad said as many as 14 channels of the Brahmaputra criss-cross Dhubri and five of them flow towards Bangladesh.

“These small channels change courses frequently. As a result, thousands of poor villagers are left homeless every year and some of them leave for good,” Hoque said.

He said the panchayat should take steps to erect bunds (embankments) on the mouth of the small channels, which would restrict the erosion to a great extent.

Pointing towards the insecurity of the villagers, Hoque said of the total 18km of border in the area, only 12km have been fenced.

There are 10 BSF outposts, which means one BSF outpost every 2.8km, making it tough for the BSF to man the entire length, Hoque said.

The Parishad will take up the threat to demography with the state and Union governments.

A BSF official of Gaspara border outpost said it was very tough to man the border without fencing as trans-border smuggling is on the rise.