MHA allots helicopters to BSF in North East

Shillong, Jan 2(UNI) The Union Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA) has provided two helicopters to the Border Security Force(BSF) to beef up vigil along the porous Indo-Bangladesh border in North East, a senior BSF official said.

The MHA's decision to provide helicopters to its frontier guards came against a backdrop of the Eastern Air Command's uncertainty in providing choppers to the BSF as and when required.

The helicopters would be placed in Guwahati and Agartala airports.

''We need a helicopter in this sector on a regular basis for reinforcement of border outposts (BOP) on certain inaccessible stretches,'' Inspector General of BSF in-charge Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur and Nagaland frontier J P Sinha told UNI here today.

He said at least 40 BOPs in Meghalaya's Garo hills districts bordering Mymensingh district of Bangladesh are currently being air-maintained for supply of ration and medicine.

At present, Mr Sinha said the BSF requisitioned helicopters from EAC for supply of ration and medicine to those BOPs located on inaccessible terrain and thick jungles.

Garo Hills, bordering Bangladesh is known to be the gateway for the North East-based militants to sneak into or out of India.

''The allotment of these helicopters would help the BSF in all front,'' the IG BSF said.

Earlier, Mr Sinha's counterpart Mr S K Dutta, in-charge of Tripura, Cachar and Mizoram frontier said requisitioning of helicopter from the EAC has become uncertain as ''the EAC has expressed its difficulty in providing helicopter as and when BSF needs it.'' UNI