A mega exercise to fortify the ‘anti-infiltration grid’ along the Pakistan border in Punjab and Jammu has been launched by the BSF, which has mobilised its entire senior field brass, thousands of troops and machinery deployed in these forward areas.
The operation, code named ‘Sudarshan’, was launched on July1 and will cover the entire over 1,000-kms length of the India-PakistanInternational Border.
While Jammu shares about 485-kms of the sensitive IB withPakistan, about 553-kms of the front is in Punjab. Further, it runs downtowards Rajasthan and Gujarat on India’s western flank. The Border SecurityForce is the primary force guarding this frontier as the ‘first line ofdefence’.
Top sources in the security establishment told PTI that ahuge assortment of heavy machinery, communication interceptors and mobilebulletproof bunkers have been mobilised, backed by thousands of BSF personnelas part of the exercise.
Frontier and battalion commanders (from the InspectorGeneral to the Commandant rank), their second-in-commands and company (unit)commanders of the about 40 battalions of the BSF are camping in the forwardareas of the two states to finish the operation within a fortnight and be attheir bases by July 15, they said.
Multiple patrols are being undertaken to strengthen Indiandefence positions and locations for launching offensive action at these bordersfrom the point of view of sealing the front against infiltration of militants,drug mules and also to ensure a befitting reply to unprovoked firing from thePakistani side. Thecommanders of the force have been asked to prepare their watch towers and sentryposts better, replenish arms and ammunition dumps, strengthen artillerypositions, check and plug border fence breaches, detect underground andcross-border tunnels and make all operational and logistical arrangements tostrengthen the vigil along the sensitive and infiltration-prone border.