Drone intrusion rises along IB in Punjab, drops in Jammu: BSF
New Delhi, 31 August: The number of drones spotted in Punjab from Pakistan has increased significantly this year as compared to the Jammu sector.
According to the Border Security Force (BSF), 107 drones flying from the other side of the border were observed inside Indian territory till July of this year, compared to 97 drones spotted the entire last year.
The BSF spotted 97 drones coming from across the border along the International Border (IB) in 2021, including 64 in Punjab, 31 in Jammu, and two entering from the Line of Control (LOC) in Jammu.
From 2022 to July, 107 drones were spotted along the IB, including 14 in Jammu and 93 in the Punjab sector, with no drones seen entering from the LOC in Jammu.
According to a senior BSF officer, the majority of these drones are from Pakistan and are used to smuggle narcotics, weapons, explosives, and ammunition.
"There are teams with anti-drone guns deployed in borders. The patrolling parties keep watch on any suspicious aerial activity and often they recover narcotics substances and arms delivered from these drones," he informed.
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BSF shot down one drone in the Ferozpur sector in 2021, while seven drones were shot down this year, and a huge proportion of narcotics that were supposed to be delivered via drones was also seized.
The total length of Punjab's border with Pakistan is 553 kilometres, with the BSF guarding a 198-kilometre stretch of the India-Pakistan border in the Jammu region.
Another BSF officer stated that there is no effective anti-drone technology available to shoot down every drone crossing the international border, but their men on the ground keep an eye on drones or any aerial object crossing the border.
"Not only ground, but we also keep an eye on the sky and BSF personnel are trained to shoot down unidentified UAVs. Sometimes drones fly too high to get detected, we only detect it by humming sound when it comes close to ground," he added.
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-PTC News
