FROM PAGE 1

support border management and security operations.

According to a press release issued by Bangladesh Ansar yesterday, the deployment aims to strengthen border security, safeguard national sovereignty, and help prevent cross-border crimes.

It said Ansar-VDP personnel are operating alongside the BGB in Chapainawabganj, Naogaon, Joypurhat, Jashore, Jhenaidah, Satkhira, Thakurgaon, Dinajpur, Sylhet, Jamalpur, and Khagrachhari. Additional members have been kept on standby for rapid deployment if needed.

The developments came amid growing tensions over an increase in alleged push-in attempts by Indian authorities, ahead of the 57th director general-level talks between the BGB and BSF, which began in New Delhi yesterday.

The talks are expected to focus on Bangladesh’s demand for an end to unilateral push-ins and extrajudicial border killings, among other longstanding issues straining relations between the two border forces.

According to BGB officials, BSF personnel removed 10 people from the zero line along the Barabari-Pradhanpara border in Panchagarh Sadar upazila around 2:40am yesterday after border security lights were switched off.

Lt Col Md Sirajul Islam, commanding officer of BGB-56 Battalion in Nilphamari, told The Daily Star that five men, two women, and three children had been stranded there since Friday morning after the BSF allegedly attempted to push them into Bangladesh.

BGB personnel blocked their entry, citing the absence of identity verification and any formal repatriation process.

The 10 people remained stranded on a narrow embankment in cropland along the zero line for nearly three days, enduring intense heat and intermittent thunderstorms. Two rounds of meetings between the border forces of the two countries, at battalion and company commander levels, failed to resolve the issue.

In a similar incident, BSF personnel removed another 11 people -- three men, four women, and four children -- from near the zero line along the Mashalgaon border in Thakurgaon’s Haripur upazila around 3:30am yesterday.

Lt Col Abdullah Al Moin Hasan, commanding officer of Dinajpur BGB-42 Battalion, said the group had been stranded near the border since early Saturday after another alleged push-in attempt by the BSF.

BGB officials said they prevented the group’s entry, citing the same reasons.

According to BGB data, at least 2,303 people were pushed into Bangladesh between May 2025 and January this year. Among them were 126 Indian nationals and 38 Myanmar nationals.

Since early June alone, there have been around 20 push-in attempts involving several hundred people, including those stranded in no man’s land.

SURVEILLANCE STRENGTHENED

The BGB-55 Battalion in Habiganj has introduced thermal drones for surveillance, intensified round-the-clock patrols, and launched awareness campaigns involving local residents to strengthen border security.

Lt Col Md Tanzilur Rahman, commanding officer of BGB-55 Battalion in Habiganj, said the battalion has issued the highest level of alert across the border area.

“Every inch of the border is being monitored with the involvement of local residents, village police, and Ansar-VDP members.”

He added that thermal infrared drones are being used for nighttime surveillance, while community courtyard meetings have been expanded.

Tanzilur also said that although reports of recent push-in incidents have emerged from different parts of the country, no such infiltration has occurred through the Habiganj border so far.

“However, we remain on high alert.”

On Saturday night, BGB personnel made public announcements in several border areas, urging residents to remain vigilant. They also held courtyard meetings, encouraging people to promptly inform the BGB of any suspicious individuals or activities. Local village police and Ansar-VDP members have been involved in these efforts.

Residents of the border area have welcomed the initiative.

STATE RESPONSE

Speaking to reporters at the foreign ministry yesterday, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam said Bangladesh is strongly protesting India’s reported push-in attempts and is not allowing such actions.

“There is a mechanism between Bangladesh and India, as there is between all countries, to verify nationality and repatriate individuals who have entered another country illegally,” she said, adding that bypassing this process and pushing people across the border is unacceptable.

She said the foreign ministry has already sent 12 to 13 letters to New Delhi on the issue and continues to raise concerns whenever reports of push-ins emerge.

“We expect the Indian government to take the matter seriously and resolve it through the proper mechanism and diplomatic channels.”

The state minister also said continued push-ins could negatively affect bilateral relations.

“If India continues to resort to push-ins instead of following the established process, it will not be good for us,” she said, adding that resolving border issues through proper channels is key to advancing bilateral relations.