Silchar: A 3.5-km unfenced stretch along the India-Bangladesh border in Sribhumi district has become a major security concern, with residents alleging frequent cross-border intrusions by Bangladeshi miscreants involved in theft, tree felling, and intimidation of villagers living near the international boundary.The stretch lies along the Kushiyara river, where border fencing remains incomplete despite longstanding demands from local residents. Villagers claim that the absence of fencing has turned the riverine sector into an easy entry point for infiltrators who allegedly cross into Indian territory, loot property, and retreat across the border before security forces can respond.According to local sources, Jarapata village under the Lakshmibazar-Lafansail gram panchayat in the Sutarkandi sector — about 14km from Sribhumi town — is among the worst-affected areas. The village lies near the international boundary between Indian border Pillar No. 5931 and Bangladeshi Pillar No. 135937.Residents alleged that Bangladeshi intruders have repeatedly cut and stolen valuable trees from the properties whose families reportedly left the village nearly a decade ago following repeated threats and attacks by cross-border criminals.“People are living under constant fear. Valuable trees are regularly cut and smuggled across the border,” a resident said.Despite repeated protests, political campaigns, and appeals over the past two decades, fencing work along the Kushiyara river remains incomplete. Officials have cited the shifting river course and technical difficulties as major obstacles to constructing permanent border infrastructure in the riverine sector.Although BSF personnel maintain round-the-clock patrols in the area, villagers said the open terrain and unfenced gaps make surveillance difficult and allow infiltrators to move across the border with relative ease.Frustrated by repeated incursions and economic losses, residents have appealed to CM Himanta Biswa Sarma to intervene and expedite fencing of the remaining stretch.The Sribhumi sector shares a 92-km border with Bangladesh, of which nearly 41km is riverine.Several stretches of the international boundary remain porous due to incomplete fencing, raising persistent security concerns among border communities.
