BSF seeks additional manpower for drone-affected Punjab border

The BSF has sought the deployment of an additional battalion to check the onslaught of cross-border drones carrying drugs and ammunition and curb infiltration along the Punjab front of the India-Pakistan border.

The force currently has about 20 battalions to guard the more than 500-kilometrelong front, out of which 18 are "actively deployed" at the border while the rest are mobilised in view of the requirements at the Attari integrated check post in Amritsar and the Kartarpur corridor at Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur district.

The drone menace that started around 2019-20 along this front is dominant in the border districts of Amritsar and Tarn Taran. One more Border Security Force (BSF) battalion has been sought to better secure the Punjab border, a senior officer told news agency. The request is under "active consideration" of the Union home ministry, he said.