WORLD NEWS | India, Bangladesh’s DGP working to check infiltration, cattle smuggling

by Syeda Shabana Parveen

Dhaka [Bangladesh]March 4 (ANI): Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said on Saturday that cross-border issues such as increasing infiltration and livestock smuggling are concerns for both India and Bangladesh, while assuring the Director-General of Police (DGP) of both countries Efforts are underway to control these “soon to zero” issues.

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“This is a problem on both sides. It is not just a problem on the Bangladeshi side. Bangladesh Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) DGP and Indian Border Security Force (BSF) DGP are working hard to control such issues and soon we will be able to come down to Zero,” Asaduzzaman Khan told ANI in response to a question on what steps the Bangladeshi side has taken to increase cross-border issues such as infiltration and smuggling of livestock.

The Bangladesh Home Affairs Minister made the remarks while attending a retreat ceremony held in Petra Pol. He was accompanied by newly appointed DG BGB Major General AKM Nazmul and IPS, South Bengal Border Inspector General, BSF Atul Fulzele.

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Petrapole is the Indian side of the Petrapole-Benapole border checkpoint between India and Benapole, Bangladesh, on the Bangladesh-India border.

During this period, officials of the two countries exchanged flowers, bouquets and sweets as a token of friendship.

Speaking about India-Bangladesh relations in an exclusive interview with ANI at the time, Asaduzaman said: “Our relationship is long-standing and we feel that India is with us and we support whatever decision India makes.”

Atul Fulzele, IPS, Inspector General, South Bengal Border Talking about the retreat ceremony with ANI, said: “This initiative has been taken to border children to show how the Border Force works so that they are attracted to the Border Security Force..We show Arms show, showing the border rules that the troops play to keep the border intact. We take them to a decommissioning ceremony to show how the border security forces of both sides are friendly and work together to defend the border.”

The Petrapole-Benapole Border Ceremony takes place every evening from 1630-1700 hours.

In March 2013, during director-general level talks between the Border Security Force and the Bangladesh Border Guard Force in New Delhi, it was decided to start a joint withdrawal ceremony at Integrated Checkpoint (ICP) Benapole-Petrapole in the first phase, followed by Burimari- BSF and BGB Changrabands, Akhaura-Agartala and Banglabandha-Phulbari between the troops.

The Petrapole-Benapole Joint Retreat was inaugurated at ICP Petrapole on 6 November 2013 by the then Minister of Home Affairs in the presence of the Minister of Home Affairs of Bangladesh. The BSF statement said it was a daily military exercise similar to the Attari-Wagah border ceremony involving soldiers from the Border Security Force (India) and the Bangladesh Border Guard Force.

The timing of the joint retreat ceremony may vary depending on the time of sunset. The 30-minute joint retreat ceremony, jointly organized by the BSF (Border Security Force) and BGB (Bangladesh Border Guard), resulted in the lowering of Indian and Bangladeshi flags. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)