No cause for alarm: M'laya BSF on deployment of drones by B'desh

Shillong, Dec 8: With Bangladesh deploying Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drones along the border, the Border Security Force (BSF), Meghalaya Frontier, on Saturday said that the situation is normal. However, the troops are always ready and alert to thwart any misadventure, the border-guarding force added. BSF Inspector General Harbax Singh Dhillon said that the situation is normal along the border and that minor issues were resolved in recent times. The channels of communication are always open, he added.

"We are ready to face any eventuality," Dhillon said on being asked about the deployment of the Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drones along the border. He added that the deployment means nothing for the Indian troops and that every country has the right to take its own decision.

Although the drones can carry payloads to target tanks, the deployment of the drones along the border is mere posturing to appease people in Bangladesh, which is facing a fluid situation that is getting out of hand for the Muhammad Yunus-run government, a top security official said.

Apart from the deployment of the drones, the BGB reportedly infiltrated into the Assam sector on Thursday last and tried unsuccessfully to stop the renovation of a temple near the Kushiyara River along the international border in Sribhumi district. The situation was, however, defused with the arrival of the BSF in the village.

On the other hand, the BSF Inspector General said that there is "nothing to be alarmed" about and that adequate precautions have already been taken after the change of regime in Bangladesh. "We are keeping a close watch on the border so that there is no infiltration," he stressed.

Stating that no country wants a volatile situation, Dhillon said that the BSF believes in the principle that without provocation, things would remain normal.

By-

Raju Das