The newly elected Chief Minister of the Indian state of West Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari, has announced the transfer of necessary land to the Border Security Force (BSF) within the next 45 days to build a barbed wire fence on the Bangladesh border.
The decision was taken at the first meeting of the state cabinet held on Monday.
The Chief Minister said that the land will be explained as soon as possible to strengthen border security and prevent illegal entry. To this end, necessary instructions have been given to the concerned administrative officials, including the Department of Land and Revenue of the state.
Talking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, Suvendu Adhikari said, “The necessary land for the construction of barbed wire fence along the Bangladesh border will be handed over to the BSF within the next 45 days. The demographic picture of the border region has changed, so it is important to strengthen security.”
He added that on the first day of taking office, the Union Home Ministry and the BSF have been given administrative approval to transfer the land. He hoped that the entire process would be completed within the stipulated time.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (BJP) was one of the main issues of building fences along the Bangladesh border and preventing illegal infiltration during the election campaign. The party had long complained that the infiltration had increased due to lack of adequate surveillance in the border areas and effective steps were not taken for political reasons.
The total length of the India-Bangladesh border is about 4 thousand 96km. Of these, West Bengal has a border of about 2 thousand 216 km, which is the longest border between the two countries.
The BJP won a major victory in the recent West Bengal Assembly elections. In the 294-member assembly, the party won 207 seats and formed the government. Later, Suvendu Adhikari was nominated as the Chief Minister by the BJP.
According to political analysts, the BJP’s decision on border security and infiltration could create new talks on India-Bangladesh relations and border management in the coming days.