Touts, Gaps in Fencing Undermine Assam’s Border Vigil as Influx from Bangladesh Continues

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: Despite the existence of 91 BSF border outposts (BOPs) and 14 Assam Police outposts and 14 patrol posts (PPs) and river patrolling on the Assam-Bangladesh border, the influx of illegal migrants continues unabated. Such a situation points to some lacunae in their vigilance, which provides these migrants the opportunity to cross over into Assam.

Since 2024, the Assam government has adopted a policy of detaining and pushing back illegal migrants without going through the legal process, and hundreds of them have been pushed back until now. The Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950, which was revived in 2025, has facilitated this policy, as it provides a faster mechanism, involving district commissioners, to deport foreigners, bypassing the often long-drawn process of Foreigners Tribunals.

Last week, a group of 20 such infiltrators were pushed back, and Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, while quoting a Hindi saying, had then remarked, “We continuously remind ourselves of this prophetic line when we expel infiltrators from Assam. We push back those who do not leave by themselves. Assam will fight, and pushback will continue.”

According to a state Home Department report, there is a 291 km stretch (including the riverine border) of the India-Bangladesh border in Assam, and fencing in a 4 km stretch could not be done due to objections from the Bangladesh Border Guards. There are 91 BSF BOPs, 14 Assam Police BOPs and 14 Assam Police PPs in existence. In addition to these, there is a proposal under consideration to set up 13 Assam Police BOPs and 12 border police stations. This is being done to minimize infiltration from Bangladesh.

Despite the presence of such outposts, groups of infiltrators are successful in crossing over to Assam, which indicates the involvement of certain touts. Recently, two Bangladeshis held in Guwahati admitted that touts helped them cross over into Assam. These touts secure Indian documents for these infiltrators, enabling them to stay in the state or travel to other parts of the country.

Sources said there is an absence of diplomatic understanding between Assam and Bangladesh, which is a key factor in forcing the state government to adopt this pushback policy. Both sides have to recognize the infiltration as a problem and initiate measures to deal with the issue.

The influx of people from Bangladesh is not new; it has been going on since the independence of Bangladesh in 1971. This influx is now posing a threat to demographic change in the state, and the NDA government is adopting a tough stance on this issue and has adopted the policy of pushing back illegals without resorting to the time-consuming legal process.

Reacting to the CM’s remark on push-back, the Bangladesh government has summoned the acting Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh. On the other hand, former High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, Veena Sikri, said that Bangladesh’s decision to summon the acting Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Pawan Badhe, over the Assam CM’s remarks is unnecessary, adding that the issue of illegal immigration should be addressed through dialogue between the two countries.

Also Read: Dalai Lama Urges ‘21st-Century Buddhists’ to Build Peace in Buddha Purnima Message