BSF recruits women to curb smuggling among women farmers

Hoshiarpur, Oct 24 (UNI) Border Security Force is recruiting women constables in a bid to curb the growing involvement of women farmers in smuggling activities at the Indo-Pak border.

As many as 612 regular women constables have been recruited in the BSF, most of whom would be deployed at the Indo-Pak border to check the women farmers who generally work in fields adjoining the border and were often used as conduits by Pakistan smugglers, Deputy Director General Punjab Frontier, BSF, K G S Cheema told newspersons at Kharkan near here.

At least 300 women recruits were being imparted the training in the first phase at BSF, Subsidiary Training Centre (STC), Kharkan, he said, adding that of the 300 women constables, 50 were from West Bengal.

''In the absence of women constables, it was difficult to check the women farmers by the BSF personnel,'' he said.

The work of fencing of barbed wire from Dinda Paharpur to Akhnoor sector in Jammu and Kashmir had been completed and would certainly minimise the infiltration of terrorists from Pakistan to Indian territory, said Mr Cheema.

To further strengthen the checking, thermal imagers has been installed at 170 posts at Indo-Pak border, which could detect infiltrators up to 400 meters during night.

Three battalion of BSF would be deployed during proposed state assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Cheema informd.

UNI XC JN RSA SB GC1928