Cross-border crimes fall after BGB's campaign

Motivational programmes by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) see success in curbing smuggling, human trafficking and other cross-border crimes in 300-kilometre area of four districts under south-western region.

The programmes include door to door campaigns, meetings at bazaars, speeches at educational institutions and imams' lectures at mosques during khutba (the speech before Jum'a prayers on Fridays) in Meherpur, Chuadanga, Kushtia and parts of Jhenidah district, BGB sources said. 

The awareness building programme started in July 2014 with battalions of BGB-47 and BGB-6 and now they are working on a 300-kilometre border belt covering the four districts under Mirpur Sector in Kushtia, they said.

"We have been successful to check smuggling of different items including small firearms and drugs and human trafficking. Especially imams' speeches during khutba before Jum'a prayers has been proved very successful to make people aware in this regard,” said Lt Col Amir Majid, director of BGB-6.

Around 1000 jawans of BGB in all 65 Border Observation Posts under the two battalions are engaged in the programme. 

Crimes in border areas have come down to 40 percent within two years of taking the initiative, said BGB officials.

According to BGB records, it recovered 14 small firearms in 2014, six in 2015 and one in last seven months since January 1 this year. 

The records of human trafficking area 11 in 2013, seven in 2014, three in 2015 and nil in seven months of the running year. 

In the said period, killing of Bangladeshi people by Indian Border Security Forces (BSF) was four in last seven months while it was seven in 2015, 13 in 2014 and 18 in 2013 in the 300-kilometre border area, BGB records say.

“Now our people in the border areas are much aware about the harmful effects of smuggling,” Sohel Ahmed, chairman of Kazipur union parishad in Gangni upazila of Meherpur.

“I have left smuggling and am trying to start a grocery. I was chased by Indian BSF several times in last two years," said a man earlier involved in cattle smuggling.