Having control over both digital media and NGOs, it was easy for the US to topple the government and destabilise Nepal -- to undercut Chinese influence and pressure India, argues Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has allocated a total of Rs 1,03,802.52 crore to the Central Armed Police Forces like the Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force and Indo-Tibetan Border Police. The amount is an increase of 7.1 per cent from the last year when the forces got Rs 92,848.91 crore.
The Bangladesh government has assured the country's Hindu community of improved security following attacks on temples and pandals during Durga Puja celebrations.
Hindu temples in Bangladesh have been vandalised by some unidentified miscreants during Durga Puja celebrations, prompting the government to deploy paramilitary force in 22 districts after three people were killed and many others injured in riots, media reports said.
The Union Budget 2025-26 on Saturday allocated Rs 2,33,210.68 crore to the Ministry of Home Affairs with the majority of the fund -- Rs 1,60,391.06 crore -- being given to central police forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) which are responsible for internal security, border guarding and security of vital installations.
The Ayush ministry has been roped in by the BSF for the project. The ministry has provided the border-guarding force with the beehives and required expertise to fix those on the alloy-made "smart fence".
The Border Security Force has handed over a list of 66 camps of north-east insurgents to the Border Guard Bangladesh, seeking actions against them.
The Border Security Force also defended its party leader or post commander of the local area wearing shorts during the flag meeting, saying it is a requirement of that special geographical area.
The question of fencing of the 4095 kilometre-long border between the two countries remained unresolved with Bangladesh resisting the move.
Sharma added that while there is "tension" at the border that runs along Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat, there has been no ceasefire violation till now in these areas.
According to the proposal, the MHA is working on a new 'model' where the burden of internal security duties, including conduct of elections, will be largely borne by the country's largest paramilitary force, the CRPF.
A Bangladeshi court on Tuesday denied bail to prominent Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, arrested on alleged 'sedition' charges, and sent him to prison, amid protests by community members in the capital Dhaka and the port city of Chattogram.
The move is part of recommendations made by a task force on the use of space technology in improving border management which have been accepted by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
'I could not imagine such a nightmarish situation awaiting me in a neighbouring country where people speak the same language as us and share similar food habits'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the Border Security Force (BSF), central agencies, and the BJP of fanning tension in Murshidabad by allegedly facilitating cross-border influx from Bangladesh. She also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to keep the Union Home Ministry under control. Banerjee has announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the families of three people killed during the violence and directed the state chief secretary to initiate a probe into the role of the BSF.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the Operation Sindoor undertaken by the Indian armed forces in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack has "completely exposed" the fact that terrorism in India is sponsored by Pakistan. Shah also said that the operation showed the "firm" political will of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the "precise" intelligence inputs from agencies, and the "lethal" capabilities of the armed forces. He added that the operation was successful as it used the correct firepower and achieved its aims besides "showing the reality" to Pakistan.
'With the US having entered the war, raising the risks of a wider conflict, those impacts could be even more damaging.'
This was the first time that sweets were exchanged between the two forces after the abrogation of Article 370 as the Pakistani side refused to continue with the custom, they said, adding after the developments of August 2019, the offer of exchanging sweets was made by the BSF but the Pakistani side did not reciprocate.
Bangladesh's police and paramilitary troops on Sunday night dispersed a huge demonstration by thousands of Islamist protesters after violent clashes in Dhaka left seven people dead and scores injured. "The Motijheel is now under our control. Hefazat-e-Islami has quit the area," a police spokesman told newsmen.
As many as 2,128 people have been arrested on the second day of a nationwide anti-terror crackdown, police said, adding 48 of them belonged to various militant outfits.
Another fallout of the Para Brigade's exercise was the realisation that thick, unrelenting fog in North India could actually create an unforeseen obstacle for the movement of India's mechanised forces -- most of India's armour strength is located in the north Indian states -- in case they need to mobilise at short notice. So, some elements of armoured forces were also moved around in winter months to understand real-time problems they may encounter because of fog and traffic
Unrest in Bangladesh's Khagracherri district has led around 90 Bangladeshi families to cross the unfenced Indo-Bangla border and take shelter at Tuichakma in Tripura's Dhalai district, official sources said on Wednesday.
Amid reports of an increase in infiltration bids, the Centre on Tuesday directed the Border Security Force to set up a real time intelligence sharing grid and seal all vulnerable points along the Indo-Pak border.
National security advisor Ajit Doval on Friday suggested that various central armed police forces of the country should have "jointness" and interoperability among themselves like the ongoing plan for the defence forces.
The clashes broke out this morning when protesters attending a non-cooperation programme to demand the government's resignation faced opposition from the supporters of the Awami League, Chhatra League, and Jubo League activists.
As part of a 'Green Mission', the Border Security Force has taken a massive plantation drive all over the country to set a record in the Limca Book of Records, a BSF officer said on Sunday.
'Our border guarding forces have also been instructed to be exceptionally alert in view of this complex situation.'
The death toll in violence across Bangladesh triggered by the execution of a top Jamaat-e-Islami leader has risen to 21, prompting Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to issue a stern warning saying, "We know how to control you."
Bangladesh on Monday virtually ruled out imposing a dawn-to-dusk curfew on its side of the porous border as done by India to check illegal cross-border movement at night even as border guarding forces of the two countries agreed on expanding ground-level cooperation to ensure peace.
At least 122 people, many of them suspected to be Myanmar's Rohingya refugees, were feared missing when a boat carrying them to Malaysia sank in the Bay of Bengal near Bangladeshi waters, officials said on Wednesday.
The BGB Director General has assured a through probe of the incident, they said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that some of the 95 Indian fishermen released by Bangladesh after being arrested for illegally entering its waters were beaten up in jail. Banerjee, who was in Sagar Island to oversee preparations for the upcoming Ganga Sagar Mela, felicitated the fishermen and described them as "victims of circumstances". She said some fishermen were limping and told her they were assaulted in jail with their hands tied, resulting in injuries below the waist and legs. She also announced two schemes to help fishermen in the state: 'Samudra Sathi' and 'Matsajibi Bandhu'.
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has been awarded the highest number of police gallantry medals, 21, including two Shaurya Chakras, on the eve of Republic Day. A total of 95 bravery medals were awarded to personnel from state and central police forces, fire service, home guard, civil defence, and correctional services. The CRPF's medals included 11 for operations in Jammu and Kashmir, seven for anti-Maoist operations, and one for an operation in the northeast. The second-highest number of medals went to Uttar Pradesh (17), followed by Jammu and Kashmir (15), Chhattisgarh (11), and the Border Security Force (5).
Media reports have speculated on this possibility.
The incident took place around 10pm at Umsyiem village near Dawki town, 100 km south of the state capital, when a mob attacked the outpost, officials said on Monday.
A Bangladeshi paramilitary court handed down jail terms of varying degrees to 665 rebel border guards for their roles in the 2009 BDR mutiny, as the country nears the completion of trials of soldiers who were accused of minor mutiny charges.
The interim budget 2024-25 on Thursday allocated Rs 202868.70 crore to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with the highest share of funds going to the paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Industrial Secular Force (CISF), showing priority on internal security and border guarding.
According to the data compiled by the Union home ministry about these criminal activities along the international borders with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar, instances of cross-border smuggling of arms, drugs and cattle increased from a total of 19,537 in 2015 to 31,593 in 2017.
