BSF foils infiltration bid in Tripura; police nab 4 Bangladeshis in Agartala

Agartala, Aug 13: The Border Security Force (BSF) on Monday foiled an infiltration attempt by 15 Bangladeshis along the international border in Tripura, while the state police arrested four nationals from the neighbouring country from the outskirts of Agartala, officials said.

A BSF spokesman said that taking advantage of inclement weather and poor visibility, 15 Bangladeshi nationals tried to cross through the Paharmura Border Outpost area in Khowai district. On being challenged by BSF troops, the Bangladeshi citizens tried to negotiate the border fencing forcefully.

To prevent the infiltration attempt, one round from Pump Action Gun was fired following which the Bangladeshis fled towards their other side of the border. Keeping the ongoing unrest in Bangladesh in mind, BSF has intensified surveillance and domination along Tripura’s 856 km border with the neghbouring country, the spokesman said.

He said that BSF troops and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) are conducting simultaneous patrolling to further strengthen the confidence building measures between the two border guarding forces for improved synergy and coordination. Patel Piyush Purusottam Das, Inspector General, BSF (Tripura Frontiers), along with other senior officials are regularly visiting the bordering areas to closely monitor the situation.

In another development, acting on a secret tip-off, the police arrested four Bangladeshi nationals from the Nandan Nagar market area in Agartala. The Bangladeshi nationals entered Tripura through a clandestine route a few days ago, a police officer said. Initially, the intruders claimed that they were Indian citizens.

“However, after interrogation, they admitted that they were Bangladeshi citizens,” the official told the media. The arrested individuals have been identified as Abdul Kalam, Kamrul Jaman, Nabir Hussam, and Md Jubayer, all residents of Chapainawabganj district in Bangladesh.