Cattle smuggling along Indo-Bangladesh border continues unabated
By Ibankyntiew Mawrie
SHILLONG:
The illegal cattle trade along the Indo-Bangla border in Meghalaya has raised questions on the role of the police and security forces in detecting the illegality at different checkpoints along the highways from Byrnihat bordering Assam till the border areas.
According to the Border Security Force (BSF), they confiscated cattle worth Rs. 33,19,95,107 (thirty-three crore, nineteen lakh, ninety-five thousand, one hundred and seven) from January till October this year.
In October 2020 alone, they seized cattle worth Rs. 3,45,10,930 from the Indo-Bangla border areas.
A source from the BSF informed that in a day, at least 30 to 35 cattle-loaded trucks coming from North India pass through the state en route to Bangladesh.
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“We had made several seizures, and the apprehended individuals are youths as young as 18-19 years old. These youths are only carriers, and the kingpins are sitting somewhere in Delhi or Dhaka,” the source informed.
“Cattle smuggling is a lucrative business, and everyone is getting a share of the profit which is why early detections were made at the different checkpoints,” the source said hinting at the possibility of a nexus between smugglers, police, BSF, government officials and to some extent, the locals.
A few days ago, information came out that the BSF mobile check post at Sonapur on the way to Ratacherra in East Jaintia Hills was removed with no rational explanation.
“We had made many seizures here (Ratacherra) but were asked to vacate this place for reasons unknown a few days back,” said the source.
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“There is a big scam. Everyone is involved, including some of our own,” the source said confidently.
When asked about the illegal trade during the lockdown period, the source said that there was a drop in the number of illegalities along the border when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country in March this year following which the lockdown ensued.
According to statistics provided by the BSF, they seized cattle worth Rs. 11,60,41,298 in February 2020. The seizures dropped in April, May and June, and went up again from September.
Though cattle smuggling witnessed a decline, drug smuggling continued in the initial stage.
“During that time, smugglers started smuggling Yaba (narcotics) tablets,” he said.
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Besides this, he informed that with the decline in cattle smuggling, some have resorted to other illegal activities like motorcycle theft and smuggling of dry peas worth lakhs of rupees.
“In the last three to four months, we have seized over 17 brand new motorcycles from the borders. This is no random robbery but organised theft,” the source said.
Emphasising on the need to conduct regular joint operations between the BSF and the police, he said unless the authorities do something, illegal trading activities will continue to be a bane for the state and its efforts to curb trafficking.
(Edited by Andre Kongri)
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