Over 100 Pakistani drones recovered from Punjab border in 2023: BSF
New Delhi, Jan 1: The Border Security Force (BSF) either shot down or recovered 107 drones from along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab during 2023, a senior officer said Monday.
The force guards more than 2,289 km of the International Border that runs along Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat along India's western flank. The Punjab region shares 553 km with Pakistan.
Quoting official data, the officer said almost all of the recovered drones were Chinese made and the maximum were recovered from farm lands running along the border on the basis of intelligence inputs.
Around ten drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were recovered from Rajasthan frontier during the same period, the officer said.
The force, during 2023, also seized a total of 442.39 kg of heroin, largely flown in and dropped by these drones, 23 weapons of different caliber and 505 rounds of ammunition from along the Punjab front, he said.
Three Pakistani intruders were killed while 23 Pakistan nationals that included two smugglers were apprehended by BSF personnel. Fourteen Bangladesh nationals and 95 Indian suspects that included 35 smugglers were also apprehended, the officer said quoting the same data.
A dozen Pakistani nationals, who had inadvertently crossed the IB fence, were also handed back to the other side, he said.
"The BSF remains committed to ensuring the security of the border with Pakistan through active communication and coordination with all stakeholders," the force said in a statement.
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Dalit outfits call state-wide hartal over dental student’s death
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Various Dalit organisations on Monday announced a state-wide hartal seeking justice in the death of Kannur Dental College student Nithin Raj.
The hartal will be observed on Tuesday from 6 am to 6 pm.
As many as 52 Dalit organisations, including Justice for Nithin Raj Action Council, have announced the strike.
Organisations requesting cooperation for the strike said that no vehicles will be forcibly stopped and that all essential services are exempted.
Raj, a first-year BDS student at a private dental college in Anjarakkandy in Kannur district, was found critically injured after falling from a building on April 10 and later succumbed to his injuries.
Police have registered a case against two faculty members on charges of abetment of suicide and under provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, following allegations by the student’s family that he was subjected to caste- and complexion-based harassment.
Kerala Pinnokka Samudaya Munnani (KPSM), one of the organisations supporting the hartal, alleged in a statement that police had shown apathy in the investigation and were attempting to protect the accused in the case.
KPSM state president K V Padmanabhan and general secretary S Anwar alleged that the probe into Raj’s death was being deliberately misdirected and delayed.
While the family has firmly alleged that caste discrimination and mental harassment by faculty members led to the student’s death, police were attempting to divert the investigation towards loan app borrowings, they claimed.
The organisation alleged that this was a planned move to shield the real accused.
KPSM further alleged that by deliberately delaying the arrest of the accused teachers, police enabled them to secure anticipatory bail.
They said there was no confidence in the present police investigation and demanded that the case be handed over to an independent agency at the earliest.
