The BSF has grown from 25 battalions in 1965, to 193 battalions with a sanctioned strength of 270,000 personnel including an expanding air wing, water wing, an artillery regiment and specialised units.[5][6] It is currently the world's largest border security force. BSF has been termed the First Line of Defence of Indian territories.[7]
History
Since India'sindependence in 1947, the protection of its international boundaries was the responsibility of the local police in each border state, with little inter-state coordination.[8] However, during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Pakistan attacked Sardar Post, Char Bet, and Beria Bet on April 9, 1965, in Kutch. This attack exposed the inadequacy of the State Armed Police in coping with armed aggression. Thus, after the war, the government created the Border Security Force as a unified central agency with the specific mandate of guarding India's international borders. This act brought greater cohesion to border security. K F Rustamji, from the Indian Police Service, was the first Director General of the BSF. Since it was a new force, the officers had to be deputed or inducted from outside to fill the various vacancies at different levels until the force's own cadre matured sufficiently. For this reason, emergency commissioned officers and SS officers of the Indian Army were inducted in large numbers into the force, along with IPS officers who were deputed to the force for high-level appointments.[8]
The BSF's capabilities were used in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 against Pakistani forces in areas where the Regular Forces were thinly spread. BSF troops took part in several operations, including the famous Battle of Longewala. In fact, for the BSF the war on the eastern front had started well before the war actually broke out in December 1971. BSF had trained, supported and formed part of Mukti Bahini and had entered erstwhile East Pakistan before the actual hostilities broke out. BSF played a very important role in the Liberation of Bangladesh, which Indira Gandhi and Sheikh Mujibur Rehman had also acknowledged.
List of DG's of BSF
K.F. Rustamji, IPS,[9] was appointed as the first Director General of Border Security Force from July 22, 1965, to September 30, 1972, and the current DG (additional charge) is Daljit Singh Chaudhary, IPS, since August 3, 2024.[10]
Prevention of trans-border crimes, unauthorized entry into or exit from the territory of India.
Prevention of smuggling and any other illegal activities on the border.
Anti-infiltration duties.
Collection of trans-border intelligence.
To promote a sense of security among the people living in the border areas.
During war time
Holding ground in assigned sectors.
Limited aggressive action against irregular forces of the enemy.
Maintenance of law and order in enemy territory administered under the Army's control.
Acting as guides to the Army in border areas.
Assistance in control of refugees.
Provision of escorts.
Performing special tasks connected with intelligence including cross-border raids.[11]
Replenishing manpower.
The BSF is also employed for internal security duties and other law and order duties on the requisition of the State Government. Being a Central Armed Police Force, it can be entrusted with policing duties at any place apart from its mandate.[11] Although originally charged with guarding India's external boundaries, the BSF in the 1990s was also given the task of counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and the Northeastern Seven Sister States. While in Punjab, the BSF took part in operations like Blue Star, Black Thunder 1 & 2. However, when the insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir broke out in 1989, it moved towards the state and handed over the operations in Punjab to CRPF and local police. In Jammu and Kashmir, the state police and the thinly-deployed Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) struggled to cope with the torturous violence, so it was deployed to combat these.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the BSF initially suffered casualties from terrorist attacks but later saw successes. During the initial years, terrorist activity had even reached Jammu and parts of Northern Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. However, it was only due to the successful operations by BSF that by the late 1990s, their area of activity had been restricted only to the valley.
BSF was also successful in setting up a robust HUMINT network. From arresting Maulana Masood Azhar, Bitta Karate, Yasin Malik, the BSF is also credited for killing Ghazi Baba - the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed and the mastermind of the 2001 Indian Parliament attack in August 2003, along with his deputy commander. The BSF raided Baba's hideout in Srinagar, and he was killed in the ensuing gun battle along with his deputy chief.
However, with changing tactical and operational conditions, and expansion and modernisation of State police, the Government withdrew all 60 BSF battalions and redeployed them on the Indo-Pakistani border and Bangladesh–India border. These troops were then replaced by fresh troops from the CRPF that had undergone specialised training in counter-terrorism.
Some units of BSF are also deployed in Central India to combat Naxal violence. Counter-Maoist operations are diversified. BSF is deployed in Kanker district of Chhattisgarh, where Naxal strength is comparatively thinner than that of other parts of Bastar region. At present total 15 battalions of BSF are stationed in different parts of Kanker district to combat the Naxal.
After recent civilian killings in Kashmir the Home Ministry re-inducted BSF for counter-insurgency operations and law-and-order duties in valley. The BSF units will be deployed in sensitive areas which lie in various districts of the Kashmir valley. A significant contributor to BSF success in the Kashmir Valley is Commandant Jagmohan Singh Rawat SM, KC. He has played a crucial role in counter-insurgency operations.
Organisation
BSF band marching contingent during the 63rd Republic Day Parade.The Home Minister with children who are part of the Bharat Darshan Tour organized by the BSF in 2012.Women personnel of BSF taking part in the ceremonial retreat at the India-Pakistan border at Wagah, 2010.A BSF soldier performs at the Attari–Wagah border ceremony metres from a Pakistan Rangers soldier.At the Petrapole-Benapole Border Ceremony, BSF and Border Guard Bangladesh personnel.
The Border Security Force has its headquarters in New Delhi and is known as Force Headquarters (FHQ) headed by a director general. Various directorates like Operations, Communications & IT, Training, Engineering, General, Law, Provisioning, Administration, Personnel, Armaments, Medical, Finance etc. function under the DG. Each directorate is headed by an IG. The Eastern Theatre is looked after by Spl. DG HQ (Eastern Command) at Kolkata and the Western Theatre is looked after by Spl DG HQ (Western Command) at Chandigarh. Field Formations in BSF are headed by an Inspector General (IG) and are known as Frontiers Headquarters (Ftr HQ). There is 13 such Frontier under which Sector Headquarters (SHQ) function headed by a Deputy Inspector General (DIG) each. Each SHQ has under its command, 4–5 infantry battalions, along with attachments of artillery, air and water wings. Presently 186 battalions are sanctioned to BSF. Five major training institutions and ten Subsidiary Training Centres (STCs) are imparting ab-initio as well as in-service training to its ranks and other CPOs/SPOs including IPS Probationers.
The BSF also has a national level school for the breeding and training of dogs. Dogs from other CPOs and State Police are sent to National Training Centre for Dogs (NTCD) to be trained in infantry patrol, detection of explosives, tracking and the like.[12]
The BSF maintains a Tear Smoke Unit (TSU), which is unique in India. The TSU is responsible for producing tear gas munitions required for the Anti-Riot Forces. It also exports a substantial quantity to other countries.[13][14]
Three battalions of the BSF, located at Kolkata, Guwahati, and Patna, are designated as the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). Each battalion maintains 18 self-contained specialist search and rescue teams of 45 personnel each, including engineers, technicians, electricians, dog squads and medics and paramedics. The establishment of each battalion is 1,158 personnel. The NDRF is a multi-disciplinary, multi-skilled, high-tech force for all types of disasters and can deploy to disasters by air, sea, and land. These battalions are equipped and trained for all natural disasters including combating Chemical, Biological Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) disasters.
Since 2014, as a part of modernisation, BSF also started installing infra-red, thermal imagers, aerostats for aerial surveillance, ground sensors, radars, sonar systems to secure riverine borders, fibre-optic sensor and laser beam intrusion detection systems on specific sections of border with Pakistan and Bangladesh. These Hi-tech systems are installed in areas where barbed wire fencing could not be installed due to treacherous terrain or marshy riverine topography. The largest section of this system is located at Dhubri, Assam, where Brahmaputra river enters Bangladesh.[15][16]
BSF Camel Contingent is a specialised battalion-size Camelry Unit which has its roots in Bikaner Camel Corps. The primary purpose of this unit is to patrol the desert section of the border with Pakistan. This unit has a strength of 1,200 camels and 800 riders. Both camels as well as riders are trained at Camel Training Centre located at BSF Frontier Headquarters in Jodhpur.[20]
However, with force modernisation pacing up, BSF has equipped its formation across the western border with All-Terrain Vehicles and other specialised apparatus.
Proposal regarding guarding the Indo-Myanmar border
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has been considering a proposal to entrust the border-guarding duty along the Indo-Myanmar border to the Border Security Force (BSF). Presently, the 1,640 kilometres (1,020 mi) Indo-Myanmar border is being guarded by Assam Rifles.
The proposed move to guard the Indo-Myanmar border follows a proposal from the BSF to take over the role by raising 45 new battalions, one headquarters of additional director general, four frontier headquarters to be headed by an IG rank official and 12 sector headquarters to be headed by DIG level officials. However, as of 1 March 2015, it was decided by the Ministry of Home Affairs to keep the authority of this border with Assam Rifles only.
All the equipment including the uniforms, weapons, ammunition, vehicles such as the bullet proof vehicles, troop carriers, logistics vehicles, mine protected vehicles are manufactured indigenously at the Indian Ordnance Factories under control of the Ordnance Factories Board.[21] Drone and anti-drone equipment is an upcoming acquisition.[22][23]
In 2010, some Canadian visa officials rejected the immigration application of a retired BSF soldier Fateh Singh Pandher, terming BSF a "notoriously violent paramilitary unit engaged in systematic attacks on civilians and responsible for torturing suspected criminals." This accusation did not go down well with the Indian government. The Indian External Affairs Ministry was asked by the Home minister to take up the issue with Canada.[28][29] The Home ministry of India, as well as the Indian public in general and several of India's political parties, expressed outrage at this attack and called Canada's actions discriminatory and spurious, and denounced their charges against the BSF as baseless and unproven. The Indian government threatened diplomatic retaliation unless Canada withdrew their allegations. The Canadian government did not respond immediately.[30] It was speculated that diplomatic retaliation from India will consist of banning Canadians going to participate the War in Afghanistan if they are doing so through India. Public outrage in India prompted Canadian authorities to express "great respect for India's armed forces and related institutions."[31] Subsequently, India's Ministry of External Affairs summoned Canadian High Commissioner Joseph Caron and demanded that "the blatant discrimination against Indian security agencies" cease.[32] India's Minister of External Affairs, SM Krishna, condemned Canada's actions and has expressed pride in the accomplishments of the BSF.[33]
Following complaints made by the Indian government and criticism of Canada's actions against India, the Harper government retracted their earlier accusations against BSF security officials. Canada's Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, termed as "unfortunate" the incidents involving use of "foul language by the Canadian High Commission in visa rejection letters to some individuals," Kenney said, "This language, or the inaccurate impression it has created, in no way reflects the policy or position of the Government of Canada."[34]
Bangladesh border killings
According to the Bangladeshi government, 136 civilians were killed and a further 170 others suffered injuries in 2009. The Indian government has said that 67 were killed and 80 injured in 2009.[35] The Bangladesh government and Bangladeshi organizations protested heavily against these alleged killings. Media reports claim that in August 2008, Indian BSF officials admitted that they killed 59 persons (34 Bangladeshis, 21 Indians, rest unidentified) who were trying to cross the border illegally during the prior six months.[36] Indian media claimed that, in 2001, Bangladesh Rifles ambushed and killed 16 BSF soldiers while they were chasing some Bangladeshi smugglers back into the Bangladesh. Since then, the BSF has been compelled to act tough against Bangladeshi illegals.[37] There was perceived retaliation by the BSF but was averted after Home Ministers of both countries had talks on the issue.
Bangladeshi media accused the BSF of abducting 5 Bangladeshi children, aged between 8 and 15, from the Haripur Upazila in Thakurgaon District of Bangladesh, in 2010. The children were setting fishing nets near the border.[39]
In 2010, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued an 81-page report which alleged "over 900 of abuses by the BSF" in the first decade of the 21st century. The report was compiled from interviews with victims of BSF shootings, witnesses and members of the BSF and its Bangladeshi counterpart. According to HRW, while most of them were killed when they crossed into Indian territory for indulging in cattle raiding or other smuggling activities.[40]
In February 2012, the BSF website was hacked by Bangladeshi hackers in retaliation. The hackers later shared the news in the internet and also in the other social sites where they claimed to have defaced the sites asking the BSF to stop killing Bangladeshis at border. The site became normal sometime on 15 February 2012.[41][42][43][44]
Challenges
Working conditions
Working conditions of the BSF have been questioned.[45] "Zero Error Syndrome" adds stress.[46] A home ministry standing committee report on the "Working Conditions in Border Guarding Forces" was published in December 2018, it was chaired by P. Chidambaram.[47][48]
Health
Health of employees remains a challenge, and given the numbers of the force, more employees, as compared to operational deaths, die of diseases, illness; and mental health issues have also been raised and addressed by the force.[49][50][51]
^"Role of the BSF". Border Security Force, Ministry of Home Affairs, India. Archived from the original on 8 September 2014. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
^"BSF Air Wing". Border Security Force. Archived from the original on 20 August 2014. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
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