FROM A CORRESPONDENT
DHUBRI, March 14: Cattle smuggling through the porous India-Bangladesh border in the Dhubri district is on the rise.
In the latest case, a smuggler was apprehended and 36 head of cattle were seized from Ghewmari border of the district on Monday. In February alone, the BSF and police personnel seized more than 300 head of cattle. During 2009-2010, the district administration had put in place stringent measures, which had brought down the transportation of cattle to Dhubri district from where they are smuggled out to the neighbouring country.
At present, owing to the alleged lack of initiative by the district administration to contain the transportation of cattle from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Bengal and Harya to the district, cattle smugglers do not face any difficulty in sending head of cattle to Bangladesh, AASU organising secretary Putul Roy Pradhani said.
"How could the then deputy commissioner, Jatindra Lahkar, stop the transportation of cattle to the district which subsequently curbed smuggling during his tenure in 2010? Why can't the present civil administration, BSF and police do the same?" Pradhani asked. While alleging rampant smuggling of cattle, secretary of Dhubri district BJP Prosenjit Dutta said smugglers take cattle through the heart of the town in small herds to the riverbank. "The small herds of cattle are assembled on the riverbank and then loaded in the boat to take them to border villages. Along the nearly 60km route from the Chagolia inter-state checkgate to the border areas there is no official or police personnel to stop them," Dutta said. Dhubri district veteriry officer Dinesh Chandra Gogoi said has blamed the lack of co-ordition among the various departments for the rise in smuggling. "An emergent meeting of the officials from civil administration, police, excise, custom, sales tax, BSF and veteriry will be called within couple of days to review the situation and action will be taken." From January to November last year, BSF jawans apprehended 17 rebels, crimils and Bangladeshi tiols and seized cattle, drugs, fake Indian currency notes and other contraband valued at Rs 3 crore.