News Analysis India

Tag: ITBP

  • Will stand by our Afghan partners; take all steps for safety of Indians, says MEA as ITBP to guard diplomats

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India on Monday said it will “stand by” its Afghan partners, take all steps for the security of Indians and its interests in Afghanistan and facilitate the repatriation of Sikhs and Hindus who wish to leave the war-torn country, in its first reaction following the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban.

    As Kabul fell to the Taliban, India’s defence top brass, the foreign policy establishment and senior intelligence officials reviewed the fast-paced developments in Afghanistan and their possible ramifications for New Delhi as well as the region in a series of meetings on Monday.

    In a related development, an Indian Air Force heavy-lift transport aircraft that had left for Afghanistan late last night and reached that country using Iranian airspace returned from Kabul to India with a number of Indians, people familiar with the developments said.

    However, there was no official confirmation on it.

    External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the situation in Afghanistan is being monitored on a constant basis at high levels and that suspension of commercial operations at Kabul airport has forced a pause in India’s repatriation efforts.

    Capping its month-long rapid advances, the Taliban took positions in Kabul on Sunday evening hours after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left for an unknown destination, paving the way for the takeover of the capital as well as the country.

    “The security situation in Kabul has deteriorated significantly in the last few days. It is changing rapidly even as we speak. The Government of India has been closely monitoring all developments in Afghanistan,” he said.

    Bagchi was replying to media queries on the situation in Afghanistan following the takeover of the country by the Taliban.

    “We are in constant touch with the representatives of Afghan Sikh and Hindu communities. We will facilitate repatriation to India of those who wish to leave Afghanistan,” the MEA spokesperson said.

    “There are also a number of Afghans who have been our partners in the promotion of our mutual developmental, educational and people to people endeavours. We will stand by them,” he said.

    Bagchi said India is waiting for the resumption of flights to restart the repatriation process.

    “Commercial operations from Kabul airport have been suspended today. This has forced a pause in our repatriation efforts. We are awaiting the resumption of flights to restart the process,” he said.

    “The situation in Afghanistan is being monitored on a constant basis at high levels. The Government will take all steps to ensure the safety and security of Indian nationals and our interests in Afghanistan,” Bagchi added.

    The MEA spokesperson also referred to periodic advisories issued by the Indian embassy in Kabul for the safety and security of Indian nationals in that country, including calling for their immediate return to India.

    “We had circulated emergency contact numbers and had also been extending assistance to community members. We are aware that there are still some Indian nationals in Afghanistan who wish to return and we are in touch with them,” he said.

    India along with many other countries was surprised at the lightning advances made by the Taliban across Afghanistan in capturing power after the US began pulling out its troops on May 1 from the country, ahead of the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

    “Definitely, we did not expect Kabul to fall so soon,” said an official on the condition of anonymity.

    People cited above said India will issue visas to all the Afghan nationals who were partnering it in various developmental projects and activities.

    They said India was planning to send another C-17 aircraft to Afghanistan on Monday as part of the evacuation mission.

    Thousands of desperate people converged at the Kabul international airport on Monday in hopes of getting on an evacuation flight and leave the country.

    The airport has already been shut for commercial flights and subsequently, the US military has taken control of the airport security to facilitate the evacuation of foreign diplomats and citizens.

    India has been a key stakeholder in Afghanistan and it has invested nearly USD 3 billion in carrying out nearly 500 projects across that country.

    The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan is largely seen as a setback for India as the militant outfit has been strongly backed by Pakistan’s military.

    Meanwhile, an armed contingent of paramilitary force Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is “actively” securing the diplomatic staff of the Indian embassy in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul and will be there “till required”, officials said on Monday as the Taliban took over the country.

    The officials said the force personnel are among the last of the diplomatic staff of the embassy who are present in the country.

    The security unit of the ITBP is actively securing the embassy staffers.

    They will carry out their duties till it is required, the officials said.

    They refused to divulge the strength of the people and the armed security personnel owing to the sensitivity of the fast-changing situation in Afghanistan.

    The ITBP was first deployed to secure the premises of the India embassy in Kabul, diplomats and staffers in November, 2002.

    It later sent additional detachments to guard the Indian consulates located in Jalalabad, Kandahar, Mazar-e-Sharif and Herat.

    The contingents from the consulates have already been withdrawn after the consulates were shut recently due to the current crisis in the war-ravaged country and also due to a negligible footfall as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the globe.

    In its first reaction to the developments in Afghanistan, India on Monday said it is constantly monitoring the situation and will take all steps to ensure the safety and security of its nationals as well as its interests in that country.

    “The situation in Afghanistan is being monitored on a constant basis at high levels. The government will take all steps to ensure the safety and security of Indian nationals and our interests in Afghanistan,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.

    Capping its month-long rapid advances, the Taliban took positions in Kabul on Sunday evening, hours after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left for an unknown destination, paving the way for the takeover of the capital as well as the country.

    “The security situation in Kabul has deteriorated significantly in the last few days. It is changing rapidly even as we speak,” Bagchi said.

    Many Hindus and Sikhs have taken refuge in Kabul’s Karte Parwan gurdwara after Afghanistan fell into the hands of the Taliban, DSGMC president Manjinder Singh Sirsa claimed on Monday.

    The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee chief said he was in touch with the president of the Gurdwara Committee of Kabul regarding the safety of minorities, including Hindus and Sikhs in that country.

    “I am in constant touch with the president of Gurdwara Committee of Kabul and the Sangat who have told me that 320 plus people, including 50 Hindus and 270 plus Sikhs, have taken refuge in Karte Parwan gurdwara in Kabul in wake of recent developments.

    “Taliban leaders have met them and assured them of their safety. We are hopeful that Hindus and Sikhs would be able to live a safe and secure life despite political and military changes happening in Afghanistan,” Sirsa said.

    Capping its month-long rapid advances, the Taliban took positions in Kabul hours after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left the country on Sunday for an unknown destination, paving way for a bloodless takeover of the capital city but triggering fear, chaos and uncertainty among its residents.

    On Monday, thousands of desperate people converged at the Kabul International Airport in hopes of getting on an evacuation flight and leaving the country.

  • Kinnaur landslide: Amit Shah speaks to Himachal CM, assures help from Centre

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday to take stock of the situation arising due to a landslide, in which over 40 people are feared buried under the debris, officials said.

    The home minister also directed the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) to provide all assistance to the Himachal Pradesh government in rescue and relief operations.

    Shah spoke to the Himachal Pradesh chief minister to enquire about the landslide in the state, an official from the ministry said.

    He assured him of all possible help from the central government to deal with the situation.

    Over 40 people are feared buried under the debris of a major landslide in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district on Wednesday.

    Several vehicles, including a Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus carrying over 40 passengers, are buried under the debris.

  • ITBP rescues injured trekker from 18,570 feet in Himachal Pradesh

    By ANI
    KULLU: In a life-saving operation, personnel of 19th Battalion Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) rescued an injured trekker from 18,570 feet on the Shrikhand Mahadev route in Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday.

    In a risky high altitude operation, the ITBP personnel carried the injured person all along 18 kilometres from Sarkand top of Shrikhand Mahadev trek to nearest road head Fancha on a stretcher.

    “The entire route was full of high altitude hazard challenges in which the jawans rescued the trapped trekker in a highly professional manner. The mountaineers of the 19th battalion ITBP have brought the injured safely after carrying him for more than 18 km on a stretcher and reached the destination road this afternoon at 3 pm,” said ITBP.

    The injured was then handed over to the civil administration.

  • In a first, ITBP deploys retired combat canines as ‘therapy dogs’

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: In a novel initiative, border guarding force ITBP has decided to utilise the services of its retired combat canines as ‘therapy dogs’ to help in the early recuperation of personnel undergoing medical treatment and also for their specially-abled children.

    The challenges of life after retirement for the aged and out-of-service four-legged soldiers has been a subject of concern for various central armed police forces (CAPFs) that deploy about 3,500 dogs for a variety of roles in the internal security domain — ranging from detecting hidden explosives to sniffing out terrorists and drugs and assault and guard duties.

    The issue was also discussed during a recently-held national conference on police canines that was conducted by the newly-created cell for this subject in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

    Dogs, at present, who retire from these central forces are usually handed over to animal NGOs or kept at a retirement home within the organisation for post-retirement care.

    A first batch of five dogs who have been living in their ‘retirement home’ at the ITBP national training center for dogs and animals at Bhanu near Chandigarh have been inducted for a second innings task of being ‘therapy dogs’.

    Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sudhakar Natarajan, the veterinary chief of the ITBP, tells PTI that Pooja, Tom, Rambo, Rani and Gravey, who recently retired from active service, are just over 11-years-old and have served in various anti-Naxal operations and counter-insurgency grids of the country along with their handlers accompanying Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) patrols.

    “All five dogs have started visiting ITBP hospitals and have given soothing emotional support to patients, that is a welcome break for them from the dreary hospital monotony.

    “Also, these dogs have interacted with children with special needs, and the spark seen in their eyes is to be seen to be believed. An immediate connection between the child and dog was remarkable,” Natarajan said about the preliminary findings of the new move.

    A compliance report submitted by the border force to its administrative department – the Union home ministry – on Thursday said that the force plans to visit local schools, where specially-abled children are taught, with these ‘therapy dogs’ to spread joy.

    The report said the experiment is being watched and analysed.

    “Our veteran K9 (canine) heroes have just been deployed as therapy dogs. The response of patients (ITBP troops under treatment in their hospitals) was very encouraging. Many are long-term patients and they expressed unalloyed joy in engaging with these dogs in non-verbal communication, purely from the heart. The long term effects on engagement with therapy dogs are being observed,” the report said.

    DIG Natarajan, the brain behind the move, said the aim of the initiative is to ensure that the canine soldiers who served with sincere dedication in the prime of their age and helped to save numerous lives from potential life threats, are taken care off even in their hey days.

    “We are fully committed to looking after our darling veteran hero K9s who have served the nation, and now even in their retired life they are contributing as therapy dogs to give emotional support to patients and special children. Since our dogs are highly trained and socialised, they are being used as a supportive therapy to manage autism and other spectral disorders in children,” he said.

    The DIG, also a veterinarian, said specially-abled children “connect with our furry darlings directly at the organic emotional level, that is not the case with human-to-human interaction, where expectations are involved”.

    Citing scientific studies, he says it has been proved by research that the very act of petting and having non-verbal, no-strings attached interaction with a dog increases the dopamine level, reduces stress hormones and improves muscular coordination and hyperactivity in special kids.

    ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said they are looking forward to further deepen the human and ‘therapy dogs’ bond and while the force has taken the first step in this direction, it expects services of more such dog-soldiers can be utilised in this domain.

    The ITBP is about 90,000 personnel strong and its primary task is to guard the 3,488 km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China apart from rendering a variety of security duties in the hinterland.

  • Uttarakhand: ITBP, SDRF remove obstacles from artificial lake in Chamoli

    By ANI
    CHAMOLI: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel along with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel on Thursday removed trees and boulders from the artificial lake formed after the flash flood in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district.

    According to ITBP sources, the flow of the water is not very high and water is discharging smoothly.

    The excavation work was carried out from 11:10 pm to 2:30 am last night at Tapovan tunnel in Chamoli. Water is being pumped out of the tunnel and excavation up to 180 meters is complete as of now.

    The death count in the Uttarakhand glacier burst incident has reached 70 after two more bodies were recovered from the debris, according to the state government on Tuesday.

    Meanwhile, the search and rescue operation for 134 missing people is underway.

    A glacier burst earlier in the Tapovan-Reni area of Chamoli District of Uttarakhand, which led to massive flooding in the Dhauliganga and Alaknanda rivers and damaged houses and the nearby Rishiganga power project. 

  • Maoist attack: Two personnel including ITBP killed in Chhattisgarh

    Express News Service
    RAIPUR: Two personnel including a jawan of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force were killed in two separate incidents of Maoist attack in the strife-torn district of Narayanpur, about 350 km south of Raipur on Wednesday.

    The rebels triggered an improvised explosive devices (IED) blast targeting the ITBP troopers who were returning from de-mining operation near Sonpur.

    According to the district superintendent of police Mohit Garg, the ITBP constable of 53rd battalion N Bala Chami from Tamil Nadu was killed in the explosion detonated by the rebels. 

    “In another incident the Maoists ambushed a team of district reserve guards (DRG) that was out on operation near Kukur village, about 28 km from Maharashtra border. A jawan Kaner Usendi was hit by bullet in his stomach and he succumbed to his injuries. The Maoist attack was swiftly retaliated by the forces following which the armed naxal cadres fled into the nearby forests”, the SP added.

    One injured DRG jawan Bankeshwar Paikra has been air-lifted to Raipur for immediate medical attention.

    Narayanpur is among the seven Maoist-affected districts in the conflict zone of Bastar, south Chhattisgarh.

  • ITBP DG, over 200 personnel get COVID-19 vaccine shot

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) chief S S Deswal along with over 200 personnel of the border guarding force on Monday received the first jab of the COVID-19 vaccine here, an official said.

    Deswal, 59, was injected the Covishield vaccine, manufactured by the Pune-based Serum institute, at a camp held at the headquarters of the force here in the CGOs complex on Lodhi Road, the official said.

    “The ITBP director general along with over 220 personnel received their first shot of the coronavirus vaccine on Monday at the force headquarters here,” an spokesperson said.

    The personnel of the force are receiving these shots at various locations of their deployment since the COVID-19 vaccination drive was launched in the country in January.

    The about 90,000 personnel strong ITBP is primarily deployed to guard the 3,488-kms long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China apart from being tasked to render a variety of duties in the internal security domain of the country.

  • Boulders in debris inside Tapovan tunnel biggest hindrance to search operations: ITBP officer

    By PTI
    TAPOVAN: Huge boulders embedded in the debris inside the Tapovan tunnel are causing the biggest hindrance to the ongoing search operations at the NTPC’s damaged hydel project site here, ITBP Deputy Commandant AK Dabral said.

    Around 25 to 35 people are feared trapped in the tunnel since the avalanche hit Joshimath area of Chamoli district on Sunday with rescue efforts by multiple agencies focused on reaching them as soon as possible.

    The combined rescue team has reached up to 130 metres inside the tunnel but there is a lot of debris clogging it, he said.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand glacier burst – 70 from UP, including 34 from Lakhimpur Kheri missing

    People feared trapped inside the tunnel should be at around 200 metres, he said.

    Personnel of the Army, State Disaster Response Force, National Disaster Response Force, Sashastra Seema Bal are coordinating and working with a defined strategy to get to those trapped inside, Dabral said.

    However, some feel that more sophisticated equipment should be engaged to expedite the rescue operations.

    Kedarnath MLA Manoj Rawat said excavators and Pokland machines should be brought in to speed up the process.

    ALSO READ: No stone left unturned – Officials race against time to save 37 workers trapped in Tapovan Tunnel

    Meanwhile, search efforts at the now demolished hydel project site at Raini also  picked up pace on Tuesday with heavy mechanical equipment tearing through the debris deposited there by the avalanche.

    SDRF personnel have been able to throw ropes across the Rishi Ganga river and are installing trolleys there as an alternative arrangement to transport food and other essentials to the residents of villages cut off due to the washing away of three pedestrian bridges and a motorable bridge in the area.

    Essentials are being supplied to these villages at present by helicopters.

    ALSO READ: Families await reunion with loved ones trapped in tunnel

    Besides, people stranded in these villages are also being evacuated by helicopters.

    Around 150 residents were evacuated from these villages on Tuesday by helicopters, Additional Information Officer Ravindra Negi said.

  • Men in uniform saved our lives: Survivors of Chamoli disaster grateful for new lease of life

    Express News Service
    DEHRADUN: K Sriniwas Reddy, a geologist from Hyderabad who is among the lucky 12 to be rescued by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police on Sunday believes he got a new lease of life. 

    “I feel blessed as I am safe now. I thank these brave men and God for saving my life. I thought that we are not going to survive this,” says Reddy. 

    “When we finally reached the mouth of the tunnel, we realised it was completely blocked. The light was coming in through a small opening and a colleague of ours got some mobile network. We managed to call our officers and were finally saved by the ITBP,” added Reddy. 

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand glacier burst: 55 UP labourers missing at Tapovan power project site

    It took an operation of over 6 hours to get these men out of the tunnel which was filled up with water.

    “Luckily, we were towards higher end of the tunnel. A sudden gush of water was followed after a thundering noise. Before we could understand, we were knee-deep in water and muck rising. We just ran towards end of the tunnel. One of us acted as there was still network in his phone,” recalls Suraj, one of the workers who is admitted in ITBP hospital in Joshimath, 15 kms from Tapovan, the site of the major damages. 

    ALSO READ: Abrupt snowslide, not glacier burst, might have caused the calamity, says Uttvarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat

    Birendra Kumar (50), senior foreman working the project acted quickly and called up his general manager to save 12 lives including his. 

    The Dhak village resident said, “We were all panicking and suddenly in the midst of all that, we felt the vibrations of my phone. I didn’t think much. I called my boss Rakesh Dimri and told him that we were trapped in a tunnel. He informed the authorities and the men in uniform saved our lives. We all thank them. They are our Gods.”

    EXPLAINED: How glaciers can burst and send floods downstream

    Sanjay Kumar, deputy commandant of the First Battalion of the ITBP who led the operation told The New Indian Express, “Once we got the information, our teams moved ahead with the task. We just wanted to save those men at any cost. It took over 7 hours because we learned that the usage of heavy machinery might hurt them. So we dug slowly and even used our hands.”

    In a bid to save the men trapped in the tunnel, the ITBP used ropes, pulleys, carabiners and spades to descend into the muck.

    Out of 12 rescued from the tunnel, four are residents of Nepal. 

    Sant Bahadur, a resident of Kanchanpur district of Nepal said, “Finally, we will be able to see our families. We thought that this was our end. These people saved us. We will now go back to our homes, first thing.”

    Out of other survivors who are recovering in various medical centers including an ITBP hospital, many are still in shock. 

    “Their mind is still coping with the shock and trauma the disaster caused to them. We are doing everything we can to make them healthy soon,” said a doctor from one of the medical centers.

  • ‘Nayi zindagi mili’: ITBP rescues workers stuck in flash-flood hit tunnel

    By PTI
    DEHRADUN: Covered in mud, several men were safely pulled out one after the other from a slush-covered tunnel by ITBP personnel in the Tapovan power project area that was swept away by a flash flood triggered by a glacier break in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand on Sunday.

    In a video of the operation shared by the border force, the rescuers can be seen raising slogans of ‘dum lagakey haisha’ while retrieving a couple of men through the vertical and narrow snout of the tunnel with the help of a rope line.

    Those present at the spot motivated the men in action with ‘bahut badhiya’ and ‘shabaash’, jo ‘bole so nihaal’ and ‘jai ho’ slogans.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand flood – 2019 study warned Himalayan glaciers melting at alarming speed

    One of the workers rescued from the tunnel was seen taking a euphoric leap as the ITBP personnel patted his back in recognition of the grit and endurance displayed by him despite being hit by a disaster and being swamped with mud.

    “Apna bhai aa gaya (our brother is back),” said a local who works in the project area as another official summed up the mood in the disaster zone by saying “nayi zindagi mili (those rescued got a new life)”.

    Multiple teams of the force, with personnel wearing protective gear and helmets, were rushed to the Tapovan power project site from their 1st battalion base in Joshimath and the ITBP mountaineering and skiing institute located nearby in Auli to launch search and rescue works.

    ALSO READ: Glacial burst in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district grim reminder of 2013 Kedarnath deluge

    Armed with mountain rescue gear, ropes, pulleys and carabiniers, the ITBP men were seen taking out the workers and putting them on stretchers that they brought along with them.

    ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said in Delhi that his personnel stationed at the Joshimath base heard a “large bang and screams of people” shortly after 10:45 AM when the tragedy is stated to have struck the two dam sites near the Raini village in Chamoli.

    A flash flood in the Dhauli Ganga river caused large-scale devastation in the upper reaches of the ecologically fragile Himalayas.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand glacier burst – Army deploys four columns, medical teams for rescue operations

    “A total of 12 workers have been rescued from the tunnel site till now. There is a second tunnel too where the rescuers are working,” Pandey said.

    Chamoli, about 270 kms from state capital Dehradun, is a border district along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China and it is well known for the Badrinath shrine that is located very close to the last Indian village in Mana.

    The ITBP has a large deployment here as part of its mandate to guard the LAC.