723 infiltrators held on Bangladesh border in Bengal till July: Government
NEW DELHI: As many as 723 illegal infiltrators were apprehended on the Indo-Bangladesh border in West Bengal till July this year, compared with 1,694 in 2024 and 1,547 in 2023, the home ministry informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
Replying to a question, junior home minister Nityanand Rai said seizures of narcotics have risen to 5,729 kg in the first seven months of 2025 from 3,145 kg in 2024 and 4,988 kg in 2023. However, the seizure of cattle along the India-Bangladesh border was down to 2,886 till July 31 this year, from 8,648 and 8,614 in 2024 and 2023 respectively.
Seizure of gold is also much lower this year, with a little less than 21 kg recovered till July 31, compared with 188 kg in 2024 and 166 kg in 2023.
The face value of fake Indian currency notes recovered this year (till July) was Rs 7.4 lakh, as compared to Rs 32.4 lakh in 2024 and Rs 15.8 lakh in 2023.
The junior home minister told the Rajya Sabha that nearly 1,648km of the 2,217km international border in West Bengal has been fenced. Of the remaining 569km, 456km is feasible for fencing. Land acquisition is yet to be initiated for 149 km by the state govt.
Around 181km of land, for which payment has already been made, is yet to be handed over by the state.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
21 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Former DG of Border Roads Organisation appointed as Telangana govt advisor on Irrigation
Former Director General of Border Roads Organisation (BRO), Lt. Gen. Harpal Singh (Retd), has been appointed as advisor to the Government of Telangana, and his services will be used by the Irrigation and Command Area Development in troubleshooting and accelerating the Irrigation tunnels being undertaken. He will be in the office for two years without any remuneration. Lt. Gen. Harpal Singh is an accomplished officer with over 40 years of experience in the Indian military, specialising in strategic infrastructure. He has extensive experience in guiding large civil infrastructure projects with expertise in the deployment of advanced technology and solutions, a statement said. As the Director General of Border Roads Organisation and as Engineer-in-Chief of the Indian Army, he had been instrumental in development of strategic tunnels and many other underground infrastructure assets for defence forces. He has been the critical force behind completion of Atal Tunnel under Rohtang Pass, progress of Theing Tunnel in Sikkim, Sela and Nechiphu Tunnels in Arunachal Pradesh and also planning of many other tunnels along the border passes in the most uncongenial Himalayan Geology. Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy and Lt. Gen. Singh are alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA) near Pune of 1979-82 batch. When the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel collapsed in February, Mr. Reddy reached out to Lt. Gen. Singh for assistance in the rescue operation. The latter shared his expertise. He is a Civil Engineer and has specialised in infrastructure development. He holds many prestigious posts in various Civil Engineering bodies, including president, International Road Federation; vice chairman, Institution of Civil Engineers (India) and chairman, Indian Institute of Bridge Engineers.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
21 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Use of AI tech to detect landslides, waterlogging soon on highways: Gadkari
In a bid to strengthen road safety and improve the quality of national highways, the government will use artificial intelligence (AI) to detect landslide-prone stretches, waterlogging, and accident-prone spots, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday. 'We are trying to use AI and other emerging technologies to detect landslide-prone stretches, accident-prone waterlogging, and black spots along the national highways. We have already issued a circular. We want to improve safety, especially in states like Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. Wherever there is flooding, we are also trying to use other technologies to check the strength of bridges and other structures,' Gadkari said. The minister made these remarks in a fireside chat on the theme India's Vision on Infrastructure during the Business Standard Infrastructure Summit 2025. He was responding to a query on the quality of roads and government measures to enhance road safety. Gadkari added that he was 'very much' conscious about road quality and would not compromise on it. 'I am very much conscious about it. I am taking strict action against defaulting contractors. I am blacklisting them, charging fines, and even pursuing criminal charges. I am not going to tolerate anything regarding quality, though sometimes there are genuine problems as well,' he said. He also spoke about the 'Rah-Veer' scheme, also known as the Good Samaritan scheme, aimed at recognising and rewarding individuals who help road accident victims by providing immediate medical attention and transportation to a hospital or trauma centre during the crucial 'golden hour'. 'If any common man takes a victim to the hospital, we are giving them an award of Rs 25,000. We want to save lives,' Gadkari said. On logistics cost The minister said he was confident that by December this year, logistics costs in India would fall to single digits from the present 16 per cent, boosting the competitiveness of exports. 'Recently, a study showed that logistics costs in India have reduced by 6 per cent. I am confident that by the end of December, logistics costs will be down to single digits. By reducing this cost, we will increase exports. To achieve a $5-trillion economy, good infrastructure is essential,' he added. This would align India with logistics costs in developed economies such as China (8 per cent), and the United States and Europe (12 per cent), he noted. On infrastructure sector development Gadkari underlined that infrastructure development was critical for the country's growth. Without good water, power, transport, and communication infrastructure, he said, it was not possible to attract industry and capital investment, limiting employment generation and poverty reduction. 'Everywhere we are constructing roads, industrial clusters, logistics parks, and real estate developments are coming up. For example, the newly inaugurated Dwarka Expressway has triggered real estate development of around Rs 8–10 trillion,' he said. He also highlighted his vision of providing an 'international standard' of public transportation with lower emissions. 'I have received proposals for ropeway cable cars, hyperloop, and sky buses. We are also working on alternative fuels and biofuels. Reducing pollution, especially air pollution, is the biggest challenge for me. My mission is also to make India free from fossil fuel imports by generating biofuels,' he added. On private investment challenges According to Gadkari, the key challenge lies not in raising funds but in deploying resources efficiently. He cited the example of the InVIT bond, which was oversubscribed within hours. 'Every project of mine is viable. The only challenge lies in pushing them through the system. Usual hurdles such as land acquisition and clearances remain, but we are constantly engaging with stakeholders to address them,' he said. On his biggest achievement Gadkari described freeing millions of rickshaw pullers and handcart pullers from human exploitation by providing them with mechanised rickshaws as his biggest achievement, besides the numerous highways and expressways he has commissioned. 'In my city and other parts of the country, there were rickshaw pullers, mostly from marginalised sections of society. It was a form of human exploitation. When I became minister, I decided to provide mechanised rickshaws. Today, nearly 15 million people across the country are using them, freeing them from this exploitation. Even women are able to earn a livelihood because of mechanised rickshaws. This has to be my biggest achievement,' he said.
Economic Times
21 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Improvement in India-China ties will aid solar supply chain: Vikram Solar
Agencies Image used for representation An improvement in India-China relations will strengthen the solar supply chain for Indian manufacturers without reviving the threat of dumping, which has been effectively curbed by government duty measures, a top official of the country's leading solar panel maker said. Allaying apprehensions that better ties with China could weaken safeguards against cheap imports, Vikram Solar CMD Gyanesh Chaudhary said government policies such as customs duties, Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and ALMM guidelines have ensured a protective environment for domestic manufacturers. "Better ties with China are good for us because our access to raw material supply chains improves. But unlike in the past, when Chinese dumping hurt the domestic industry, today the government has secured Indian manufacturers," Chaudhary told PTI. He pointed out that the imposition of 40% basic customs duty on modules and 25% on cells, along with the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and Approved List of Models and Manufacturers guidelines (ALMM), has created a protective environment for domestic players. Chaudhary emphasised that while India's dependence on China for solar components was almost 100% when solar initiatives began, it has now reduced to about 80%. He noted that the domestic ecosystem is developing rapidly, with expectations that this dependence will decline significantly within the next three to five years."Chinese dumping has come to a grinding halt. As a result, more than 90% of our revenue last year came from the domestic market," Chaudhary the outlook for anti-dumping duties, he refrained from speculating on possible changes but added, "I would assume the government of India, with its strong domestic manufacturing push, will continue to secure local producers from dumping." Chaudhary downplayed concerns over US tariffs. Vikram Solar, which has had a subsidiary in the US for nearly a decade, is waiting for clarity on tariff changes before scaling up exports. "India shipped just 2 GW of modules to the US last year, compared to a domestic market of more than 50 gigawatts. Exports contributed only around 1% of our revenue. We are betting big on the domestic market. But with the strong bond between India and the US, we see global opportunities opening up in the future," he said.
