With fencing along the Indo-Bangladesh border once again coming under focus following the recent serial blasts in Assam, the Centre is now planning to take up with the Bangladesh Government the matter relating to doing away with a 33-year-old understanding between the two countries which prohibits raising of structures of permanent nature within 150 yards of the Zero Line.The Joint Indo-Bangladesh Guidelines for Border Authorities, 1975, stipulate that both sides will not allow any construction of permanent nature within 150 yards of the Zero Line on both sides. According to senior Home Ministry officials, India has not been able to erect fences at around 265 points along the Bangladesh border because of this rule.“The topography of these border areas often throws up scenarios where fencing within these 150 yards is considered imperative to stop infiltration,” said a Home Ministry official. “However, the Bangladesh authorities have often opposed any moves to erect fences within 150 yards in some places saying fence is a defensive structure and violates provisions of the Joint Indo-Bangladesh Guidelines for Border Authorities, 1975,” the official added. In fact, there have been instances where Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) troops have fired at Indian personnel involved in fencing on the border. Officials said the Indian Government, for long, had argued with the Bangladesh authorities that erecting a border fence did not violate the 1975 guidelines since fencing was not a structure of permanent nature and hence should be allowed within 150 yards of the Zero Line, wherever required. However, with the Bangladesh Government not appreciating this reasoning, the Home Ministry is now considering getting a Cabinet nod for amending the 1975 guidelines so that the matter to remove the 150-yard rule can be taken up with the Bangladesh Government. Out of the 4,096-km-long border India shares with Bangladesh, around 2,626 kms have been fenced since 1986. Also, around 3,300 kms of border roads have been constructed to enable the maintenance of border fencing.
