Amit Shah inspects indigenous border security technology in West Bengal

Union Home Minister Amit Shah inspects the surveillance system of the border station at Jumagachh BOP of the 18th Battalion of the North Bengal Frontier BSF from the watch tower in Siliguri on July 18, 2026. Photo: X/AmitShah via ANI.

Calcutta

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday (July 18, 2026) said the Siliguri corridor in West Bengal, which was “once an infiltration corridor under previous governments”, is now becoming synonymous with a secure border.

As part of his three-day visit to the state, which ends on July 19, Mr. Shah visited the Jhumagachh Border Outpost (BOP) of the 18th Battalion of the North Bengal Frontier BSF in Siliguri, where he viewed indigenous and state-of-the-art technologies aimed at strengthening border security.

“I checked the operational readiness by viewing the exhibition of Intruder Warning System, Radio Fence Breach Detection System, Gate Management Software and Indigenous Border Security System installed on the new design fence. Equipped with state of the art equipment and modern warning systems, our border becomes an ideal example of modern border security,” Mr Shah wrote on social media.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah reviews operational preparations during an exhibition at the Border Guard Conference held at Jhumagaachh Border Post in Siliguri on July 18, 2026. Photo: X/@AmitShah via ANI.

He also chaired a high-level meeting with senior BSF officers in Siliguri, which was also attended by Chief Minister Adhikari, Members of Parliament, Union Home Minister Govind Mohan, Border Management Secretary Rajendra Kumar, Director Intelligence Mahesh Dixit, BSF Director General Praveen Kumar, senior state police officers, state government officials and district administration officials.

Earlier in the day, Minister of State Agnimitra Paul said the Union Minister’s visit would focus on international border fencing and security in the Siliguri Corridor, commonly referred to as the ‘Chicken’s Neck’. “For the last 15 years, the Supreme Court has been running the previous government, but it has done nothing but play politics on this issue,” Ms Paul said.

₹77 projects inaugurated

Mr. Shah practically laid the foundation stone and inaugurated the development projects worth ₹ 77.06 crore. It included laying the foundation for the construction of a 4km border fence to be built at a cost of ₹30 crore on newly acquired land for two border posts in West Bengal.

The minister said during the event that the government is setting up a quadrilateral security network to fortify the borders. He emphasized that the welfare of security personnel guarding national borders and their families is the highest priority of the government. The government is working to make the borders completely secure and to prevent infiltration in the border areas through the concept of ‘smart borders’.

The BSF has already said that it will speed up border fencing in collaboration with other government departments. However, the Sundarbans, with its dense mangrove forests and multiple river channels, remains a significant challenge.

Soon after the BJP took power in West Bengal, Mr Shah said the party’s victory in the state would plug “one of the biggest holes” in the country’s border security.

“The central and state governments will work together to turn the border into an ‘impenetrable fortress’ for national security,” Mr Shah said on May 8.

During the 2026 Assembly election campaign in the state, the BJP leadership highlighted the problem of infiltration from Bangladesh and promised to fence all unfenced areas along the international border to prevent illegal crossing.

India shares a 4,096 km border with Bangladesh, of which more than half – 2,216 km – lies in West Bengal, while Tripura shares 856 km and Assam 267 km.

Almost 80% of the India-Bangladesh border in West Bengal is already fenced, according to previous official records.

Published – 18 Jul 2026 22:44 IST