BSF guns down Pak infiltrator near border in Tarn Taran; ‘sharp surge in drone activity, smuggling bid’

Amritsar: A sharp surge in cross-border smuggling attempts and drone activity along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab has raised fresh security concerns, with the Border Security Force (BSF) recently gunning down a Pakistani national during a late-night infiltration bid in the border belt of Tarn Taran district.Highly placed sources revealed that attempts to smuggle arms, ammunition and narcotics into India through Punjab increased dramatically in recent weeks. According to officials familiar with the developments, recoveries of consignments as well as cross-border smuggling attempts rose 3 to 4 times compared with the corresponding period last year, signalling an alarming escalation in hostile activities along the international border.The latest incident occurred near the border village of Norwala in Tarn Taran district on the intervening night of March 9 and 10. Sources said BSF troops detected suspicious movement close to the border fence and challenged the intruder attempting to infiltrate Indian territory. Despite repeated warnings by the border guards, the intruder allegedly continued to advance, prompting the troops to open fire. The unidentified Pakistani national was killed on the spot. However, sources said that no incriminating material was recovered from his possession, leaving security agencies probing the motive behind the intrusion. Security officials believe the rising number of smuggling attempts, drone sorties and infiltration bids point to a broader design orchestrated by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to destabilise Punjab.According to investigators, the pattern of activities suggests an attempt not merely to push narcotics and weapons across the border, but to fuel a wider network of criminal and anti-national elements inside the state. Sources indicated that several investigations conducted in recent months revealed that many gangsters, drug smugglers and even persons involved in extortion rackets in Punjab are operating with support and guidance from handlers based in Pakistan. Officials said that threats sent through emails to schools, govt offices and other institutions are also suspected to be part of a psychological campaign aimed at spreading panic and diverting security resources."The objective appears to be to keep security agencies constantly engaged in tackling such threats so that valuable energy and resources which could otherwise be utilised for development and public welfare get diverted towards maintaining law and order," said a source. Despite the seriousness of the situation, officials of the BSF declined to comment regarding the intrusion attempt, drone activities or recent recoveries of narcotics and arms along the border, pleading a revised media policy that restricted officers from publicly discussing operational details related to border security incidents with the media. MSID: 129399022 413 |