Sarkar worry porus border

Porous border are helping rebels unchecked movement, says Manik Sarkar, the Tripura strong man. In his assessment at least 50 per cent of state’s 856-km border with Bangladesh is porous and "very vulnerable" for cross border movement of militants.

He is confident that joint patrolling would help but is sore that Bangladesh is refusing joint patrolling.

Sarkar identified the border with Sylhet district and Chittagong hill tracts as "very vulnerable" and easiest for the militants for criss-crossing at will.

"We urged the Centre to tighten vigil along 450 km of the 856 km Indo-Bangla border and erect barbed wire fence in the first phase on a war footing,’’ he says  with no conviction that the centre would oblige him.

The Border Security Force had proposed to the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) to conduct joint patrolling along the Indo-Bangla border to check cross-border movement of the militants and other crimes, but the Bangladesh Government had not agreed. Dhaka is yet to initiate action against the camps set up by the Indian militants on their soil.

The BSF estimated that 22 battalions were required to guard the 856-km long Indo-Bangla border with Tripura, where 84 per cent boundary is international border.

But at present only 11 battalions of BSF are guarding this porous border, the Chief Minister says,

One battalion is deployed per 15 kms on the border in Jammu and Kashmir but here in Tripura, one battalion is asked to guard a stretch of about 110-km border, Sarkar says with a tinge of annoyance at the centre.

With border fencing now being undertaken by the five agencies, including border road organisation and Central Public Works Department, seven hundred and thirty six km of the 856 km border will be fenced by 2006. One kilometre of fencing cost between Rs 1.10 crore and Rs 1.35 crore.

Chief Minister has taken to task Union Minister of State for Home Swami Chinmayanand for saying that the situation in Tripura was worse than in Jammu and Kashmir. He said such "partisan" statements will boost the morale of the anti-nationals and the ISI of Pakistan, while dampening the spirits of security forces fighting against the militants at great personal risk.

Chinmayananad’s criticism   came in the wake of his visit to Baralunga and Totabari near Khowai, where 30 non-tribals were massacred by the All Tripura Tiger Force militants on August 14. "Though the strength of the Central para-military force is 153 companies in the State, the Government did not properly utilize the Central force in the anti-insurgency operations. There is a distinct lack of political will to solve the militants’ problems,’’ the union minister had commented.

Replying to this criticism, Manik Sarkar said these allegations are partisan, baseless and uncalled for. He said “no central para-military force had been used for personal security purpose as alleged by the Union minister. Swamy Chinmayanand also gave wrong statements about the use of Central para military force in the counter-insurgency operation”.

The Tripura Government has been demanding another five battalions of CRPF, three battalions of Army and 11 battalions of BSF for the counter insurgency operation and to guard the Indo-Bangla border more efficiently. This requirement has been projected by the State level coordination committee, which supervises the counter insurgency operation, Sarkar pointed out..

He said, we are the only State in the country which openly declared that the Centre might talk to the militants without consulting the State Government and the outlawed extremist outfits also can hold talks with the Union Government. The State Government would not be a stumbling block in such talks, he made it clear.

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