Border guards of India, Bangladesh discuss Rohingya crisis

The "security concerns" over the Rohingya influx were among the many issues discussed on the last day of the four-day conference between top officials of border guarding forces of Bangladesh and India.

At the biannual conference that concluded in Agartala yesterday, officials of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) pledged to maintain peace through effective coordination.

Talking to the press at the BSF frontier near here, Md. Zahid Hasan, the Additional Director General of BGB, said the two sides discussed ways to control border crimes, including infiltration of Rohingya refugees.

He also asserted that the refugees from Myanmar have exerted economic pressure on Bangladesh, but they did not pose any threat.

The claim was, however, contested by BSF Inspector General (Tripura Frontier) H K Lohia, who said the "threat perception" from Rohingya refugees should not be ruled out entirely.

Hasan, while talking at the press meet, said, Bangladesh had taken measures to control Rohingya movement.

"The Rohingya refuges from Myanmar are not allowed to go outside their camps in Bangladesh. We have our security systems in place," he added.

The official also said the country had been hosting over 1 million Rohingya refugees.

"We have our limitations and capabilities. We are managing over 1 million Rohingya refugees. We feel they have exerted socio-economic pressure on the country, but there is no terror threat from them," Hasan said.

Lohia, who attended the media interaction along with IG Laltendu Mohanty from the Meghalaya frontier and IG NS Jamwal from Assam, said, there was no evidence to suggest that the Rohingyas had terror links, but it was necessary to remain alert as a number of refugees have infiltrated into other countries, including India.

"A huge number of Rohingya refugees have migrated to other countries. The possibility of terror threats can't entirely be ruled out at this moment. However, no credible proof was found so far to suggest that Rohingya refugees have terror links," he added.

Both sides also stated that the cordial relationship between the BSF and the BGB would go a long way in containing human trafficking and illegal arms trade.

Earlier in April, 18 Rohingya refugees were arrested from the Teliamura area in Khowai district of the state, 50 km from here. Police said the refugees were on their way to Delhi from Chittagong in Bangladesh.

In October last year, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) asked the state government to identify and monitor Rohingya refugees.

In the letter, Joint Secretary, MHA, Dilip Kumar, also said infiltration from Rakhaine state of Myanmar into the Indian territory was a burden on the limited resources of the country.