Kolkata: The Bengal govt has handed over 1,024.75 acres of land in nine districts to the BSF to facilitate construction of fencing across 172.6 km of the international border, CM Suvendu Adhikari said on Tuesday.Murshidabad accounts for the largest share, with 337 acres of land transferred, covering 45.4 km of the border. North 24 Parganas follows with 241.03 acres across 42.07 km, while Cooch Behar has contributed 135.33 acres for 39.39 km of fencing.In a post on X, Adhikari said: “Ensuring national security and strengthening our borders is the top priority for our govt. In our commitment to securing the India-Bangladesh border, we have expedited the land transfer process to the Border Security Force (BSF) for the construction of essential fencing. As of Tuesday, a total of 1,024.75 acres of land spanning across 172.6 km has been formally handed over for this purpose.”In Malda, 176.78 acres have been handed over for 20.15 km of fencing, followed by Nadia, where 95.11 acres covering 14.79 km have been transferred. South Dinajpur accounts for 26.41 acres across 7.75 km, while Darjeeling, North Dinajpur and Jalpaiguri have transferred 4.31 acres for 1.45 km, 6.61 acres for 1.28 km, and 2.17 acres for 0.31 km, respectively.Officials said the land transfer is intended to remove one of the major bottlenecks in completing border fencing, enabling the BSF to accelerate construction in areas where work was delayed due to non-availability of land.“We remain steadfast in our resolve to complete these projects to ensure a safer and more secure environment for our citizens,” the CM said.Out of Bengal’s 2,217-km border with Bangladesh, roughly 1,600 km is fenced. The Centre had alleged that the previous Trinamool govt did not provide land to BSF for border fencing. For decades, illegal migration from Bangladesh has been a major concern for Bengal.The BJP govt, in its first cabinet meeting, decided that all pending land transfers required for border fencing would be completed within a strict 45-day time frame to remove administrative bottlenecks and expedite completion of the India-Bangladesh border fence. Following MHA guidelines, the state govt also initiated an aggressive drive to track down undocumented foreign nationals and set up holding centres.DG BSF visits coastal areas, holds review meetingDG BSF Praveen Kumar on Tuesday visited coastal areas along the Indo-Bangladesh boundary in the deep Sundarbans delta and adjacent areas. He reviewed operational preparedness, the border security grid and ongoing fencing works. Kumar also held outreach meetings with local residents and govt officials. He later chaired a high-level review meeting with all stakeholders on fencing project progress and border management, with focus on better inter-agency coordination for a stronger border security grid.
