File picture of security personnel deployed on the border

Silchar, Jan. 14: The state of emergency in Bangladesh has triggered apprehension on this side of the border about a spurt in infiltration by militants.

The Karimganj administration — the district shares 92 kilometres of the border with the neighbouring state — has asked the BSF to seal the border and deploy additional battalions for round-the-clock patrolling.

Karimganj police and the BSF organised a rally yesterday at Patherkandi town in the district to raise awareness about rebel influx.

The rally was attended by representatives of all communities and presided over by the Karimganj district additional superintendent of police, Mahesh Chandra Sarma.

Such rallies will also be held in other blocks spread over the border district, police officials added.

The primary idea behind the rally was to alert people about the influx of militants and ways to reach the police and administration in case they spot any suspicious movement along the border.

The modus operandi has been kept as simple as possible to ensure no information goes unreported.

Sarma said if anyone finds it difficult to contact the nearest police station or patrol he or she can post a bearing letter, without affixing any postal stamp.

He said the letter could be addressed either to him or any other police official giving details and whereabouts of strangers moving in the area.

Information from Patherkandi block, for instance, can be significant as militants usually take this route to reach Assam from Bangladesh. The block shares its border with both Bangladesh and Tripura. Militants often sneak into Tripura and from there into Assam.

In the past few years, the BSF and the police have arrested several militants belonging to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the United National Liberation Front.

Intelligence reports indicate that Ulfa has at least 36 training camps spread across Moulvi Bazar, Sherpur, Sylhet, Kurigram, Tangail and Mymensingh districts in Bangladesh. There are at least 17 camps of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), 10 of Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam and six of the PLA of Manipur located in Bangladesh.

The administration is apprehensive of infiltration attempts by Bangladesh-based fundamentalist outfits such as the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, Jamaat-ul Mujahideen and Jagrata Muslim Janata.