Two additional battalions of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) will soon be deployed on the India-Nepal border passing through in Bihar to help the state police enforce total prohibition and check other illegal activities.

A decision to this effect was taken at a review meeting of the SSB, which was presided over by newly appointed director-general (DG) Archana Ramasundaram at the frontier headquarters office on Thursday. Senior officials of the state police also took part in the meeting. After the meeting, deputy inspector-general (DIG), SSB, Muzaffarpur, Sanjay Kumar said Ramachandran had assured to deploy two more battalions on the 735-km long porous Nepal border falling under Bihar. It was her maiden visit to the state after assuming charge as chief of the paramilitary force in February this year.

"We promised the Bihar police to intensify vigil on the border to check smuggling of liquor from Nepal," Sanjay said and added that the SSB commandants held meetings with officials of the bordering districts to chalk out strategies.

Sanjay, who was present at the review meeting, said the additional force would reach Patna frontier headquarters soon after the state assembly elections in Bengal, Assam, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. With this, the number of SSB battalions deployed on the Nepal border would rise to 12.

The SSB DG also interacted with Bihar DGP P.K. Thakur, who also happens to be the former's batch mate. She is a 1980-batch IPS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre and she later distributed prizes among the winners of 11th inter-frontier athletics championship 2016 held on the premises of the Bihar Military Police.

Athletes from Guwahati Frontiers headquarters emerged overall champion of the tournament with 89 medals in their kitty. The Ranikhet frontier headquarters was declared the runners-up with 44 medals. DGP Thakur, IG (operations), S.M. Khopde, IG, BMP, Ajitabh Kumar, IG, SSB, Ashok Kumar Singh were among senior officials present at the award distribution ceremony.