SSB steps up tech-driven surveillance along Nepal, Bhutan borders near Assam

The force is strengthening surveillance, intelligence and community engagement along India’s Nepal, Bhutan borders to combat narcotics, arms human trafficking

Soldiers of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) at the investiture ceremony in New Delhi (Photo: @airnewsalerts / X)

New Delhi, Sept 2: With Assam’s strategic location making it a key gateway to the Northeast, the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) is stepping up technology-driven surveillance, intelligence gathering and community engagement to strengthen security against narcotics trafficking, arms smuggling, human trafficking and other transnational crimes.

The renewed focus on border security assumes significance for Assam, where concerns over narcotics trafficking, organised crime and the movement of contraband have grown in recent years. Security agencies are increasingly focusing on routes connecting the Northeast with neighbouring countries to prevent criminal networks from exploiting the region’s geographical connectivity.

The issue came into focus at the SSB Investiture Ceremony in New Delhi on Tuesday, where Union secretary Govind Mohan stressed the need to secure India’s friendly and open borders with Nepal and Bhutan while ensuring that legitimate movement of people and goods is not unnecessarily disrupted.

The SSB is responsible for guarding around 2,450 km of India’s open international borders with Nepal and Bhutan. The India-Bhutan frontier is particularly relevant from Assam’s security perspective because of its proximity to the State and its wider implications for connectivity, trade and movement across the Northeast.

Assam’s position as a major transit and connectivity hub means that vulnerabilities along neighbouring international frontiers can potentially have consequences well beyond border areas.

“Any security vulnerabilities along the India-Bhutan frontier can therefore have implications beyond the immediate border areas, particularly when criminal networks attempt to exploit legitimate cross-border movement,” an official said.

Mohan said border security was an important foundation of India’s internal security and praised the SSB for its role in managing the country’s open frontiers. “Maintaining a balance between security, public convenience and friendly relations amid large-scale legitimate movement across these borders is an important responsibility of the SSB,” he said.

Unlike heavily fenced international borders, the open frontiers with Nepal and Bhutan present a distinct challenge for security agencies as there are no continuous physical barriers to regulate movement.

Mohan appreciated the SSB’s efforts to strengthen surveillance through facial recognition systems, radars, CCTV cameras and other modern technologies. He also highlighted the force’s action against human trafficking, counterfeit currency, narcotics and arms smuggling.

For Assam, the emphasis on technology is significant as security agencies seek to track evolving methods used by trafficking and smuggling networks. Improved surveillance and intelligence-sharing could help identify suspicious movement while allowing legitimate cross-border activity to continue.

The Secretary also referred to a quadrilateral border security framework envisaged by the Ministry of Affairs, involving border-guarding forces, state governments, Central government agencies and border communities.

SSB director general Sanjay Singhal said the security environment along international borders was changing rapidly. Hybrid warfare, cyber and information warfare, drone-based threats and evolving methods of smuggling are creating new challenges for border forces, he said.

Singhal said that SSB is consequently strengthening its operational capabilities through drones, modern surveillance systems, improved communication equipment and other technological tools.