Tripura: Anti-smuggling drive linked to BSF team attack
Police say intensified operations against illegal trade prompted the November 2 assault on Border Security Force personnel in Ashabari.
An attack on a Border Security Force (BSF) team in the Ashabari area of Tripura on November 2 was prompted by intensified anti-smuggling operations, according to Sepahijala Superintendent of Police (SP) Bijoy Debbarma. The assault occurred after the force intercepted an alleged smuggling attempt, leaving three personnel, including an assistant commandant, injured, as reported by The News Mill and ThePrint.
Debbarma stated that the violence was a reaction to losses faced by smuggling syndicates. Over the last year, joint teams from the police, Tripura State Rifles (TSR), and the BSF destroyed at least 1.5 crore ganja plants in the Sonamura subdivision of Sepahijala district. These operations caused an estimated Rs 1,000 crore loss to illegal operators and led to the seizure of smuggled goods worth several crores of rupees.
Authorities have taken 21 individuals into custody regarding the incident, including two primary suspects. A detailed investigation into the matter is currently ongoing, Debbarma said.
The Sepahijala district shares approximately 99 km of boundary with Bangladesh, with nearly 99 per cent of it fenced. However, smugglers still use various methods to transport contraband, medicines, clothes, cattle, and essential commodities across the border.
Debbarma noted that around 300 families reside outside the barbed-wire fencing along the international boundary. This is due to an India-Bangladesh agreement that prohibits permanent structures within 150 yards of the zero line, a situation that provides opportunities for smuggling activities.