JOIN USThe Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), the force guarding India’s borders with Nepal and Bhutan, will soon have a robust intelligence unit, with the Centre giving approval for 650 combat posts for intelligence gathering.
With the SSB being declared the Lead Intelligence Agency (LIA) for the Indo-Nepal and Indo-Bhutan borders, this approval will help in providing a well-knit intelligence network to anticipate threats.
The SSB guards the two borders where there are no restrictions on the movement of people on either side.
The area under the SSB jurisdiction comprises densely populated foothills and plains, thick jungles, underdeveloped regions and inhospitable terrains.
“There is trans-border movement of criminals and anti-national elements and it poses a major challenge on the border in the context of the visa-free regime. Most of the stretches of the border are infested with ISI activists, insurgent groups, Maoists, fundamentalists, smugglers of narcotics, arms and fake currency, and human traffickers,” an official statement said.
Director General of SSB Archana Ramasundram expressed confidence that this much-needed wing would result in a marked improvement in the force’s performance in times to come.
The SSB had earlier sent a proposal to the Ministry of Home Affairs for setting up an intelligence unit to strengthen the efficiency and operational mandate of the force on borders and for internal security duties in Jammu and Kashmir and anti-Maoist duties, the official said.