Trans-border smuggling to top agenda

Bangladesh and India kick off a border conference at the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) headquarters today focusing on different issues including preventing trans-border smuggling and improving law and order in the border areas.
At the six-day director general level conference, both BDR and BSF will also exchange the lists of criminals hiding in India and Bangladesh, sources said.
"The conference will mainly focus on two issues-- preventing drug smuggling and human trafficking and improving law and order in the border areas," BDR DG Maj Gen Md Rafiqul Islam told The Daily Star.
Regarding frequent shooting incidents in the border areas, the BDR DG said, "We will propose to impose section 144 after the evening hours in some specific areas to restrict people's movement."
"It will improve the law and order in bordering areas," he added.
"We have prepared a list of wanted criminals who are suspected to have been hiding in neighbouring countries. The list has been prepared in cooperation with different law-enforcing and intelligence agencies," Rafiqul Islam said adding, "Both BSF and BDR will exchange such lists and a discussion will take place on the issue."
At the conference, Dhaka will raise the issue of killing, wounding, and torturing of unarmed Bangladeshi nationals by BSF and Indian civilians at the border, BDR sources said.
Issues of adversely possessed land, construction of structure illegally, abduction of Bangladeshi people by BSF men will also come up for discussion.
BSF DG Raman Srivastava leads a 20-member delegation while BDR chief a 22-member team in the conference.