Border

The era when anyone could encroach on India's land has passed and no one can dare to eye its border, Home Minister Amit Shah said here on Monday. Launching the Vibrant Villages programme in the border village of Kibithoo in Arunachal Pradesh, India's easternmost place, Shah said the valour of army and ITBP personnel ensures that no one can encroach even an inch of India's land. He said border areas are the top priority of the Modi Government, pointing to the infrastructure and other development works carried out in the Northeast. "The era is gone when anyone could encroach on our lands. Now, not even land equal to 'sui ki nook' (inch of land) can be encroached...," the minister said. Paying homage to the martyrs of Kibithoo who laid down their lives during the 1962 war, Shah said they fought with indomitable spirit despite the lack of resources. Shah said no one says 'Namaste' in Arunachal Pradesh as people greet each other with 'Jai Hind' that "fills our hearts with patriotism".

The Uttarakhand Police on Tuesday conducted a combing operation at gurdwaras, hotels and in areas on the Indo-Nepal border in Udham Singh Nagar district in search of radical preacher Amritpal Singh and his associates, who are on the run after the Punjab Police launched a crackdown against them. The police kept searching for these criminals across the district, City Superintendent of Police Manoj Katyal said here. Following information from their Punjab counterparts that Singh and his associates were trying to flee the country, the police launched a search operation in Uttarakhand, he said. Intelligence agencies are also monitoring the situation. A close vigil is being kept on the India-Nepal border so that he does not escape to Nepal through here, the police said. The police have also put up posters to inform residents that Singh and his aides are wanted in Punjab.

The United States recognises the McMahon Line as the international boundary between China and Arunachal Pradesh, according to a bipartisan Senate resolution which sees Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India. At a time when China continues to pose grave and gathering threats to the Free and Open Indo-Pacific, it is critical for the United States to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our strategic partners in the region, especially India, Senator Bill Hagerty, who along with Senator Jeff Merkley introduced a resolution in the Senate, said. This bipartisan resolution expresses the Senate's support for unequivocally recognising the state of Arunachal Pradesh as an integral part of India, condemning China's military aggression to change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control, and further enhancing the US-India strategic partnership and the Quad in support of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific, he said on Tuesday. The resolution, which comes following the biggest clash between t

As per the Election Commission of India, the voting will start at 7 am today and will conclude at 4 pm. The counting of votes will be held on March 2

Pakistan shut down a key border crossing with Afghanistan just hours after it was reopened on Thursday, officials said, the latest twist in the controversial closure of the Torkham junction that started earlier this week. The issue of the crossing, a key trade route for both Afghanistan and Pakistan, has added to increasing tensions between the two countries, which share a troubled and volatile boundary. Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Sunday closed the crossing, claiming Islamabad was not abiding by an agreement with Kabul to allow Afghan patients and their caretakers to cross into Pakistan without travel documents for medical care. On Monday, Afghan Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards exchanged fire, which wounded a Pakistani soldier. On Wednesday, Pakistan's defence minister, Khawaja Mohammad Asif, and secret service chief, Lt. Gen. Anjum Nadeem, travelled to Kabul and met senior Taliban officials to discuss the border issue. On Thursday morning, Torkham was reopened by .

In a bid to ensure free and fair assembly elections in Tripura, the international border with Bangladesh and inter-state boundaries will be sealed from Monday, a senior poll official. Elections to the 60-member assembly of the northeastern state will be held on February 16. The international border with Bangladesh and the inter-state boundaries with Assam and Mizoram will be sealed from Monday, following instruction from the Election Commission," Chief Electoral Officer, Tripura Gitte Kirankumar Dinkarrao told reporters on Sunday. The BSF, which has been "maintaining strict vigil along the India-Bangladesh border", has been asked to seal the boundary for free and fair elections, he said. Dinakarrao also said the commission will launch checking at hotels, hostels and marriage halls from Monday, 72 hours before the polling, to ensure that "outsiders do stay in a particular area where he or she is not a voter". Stating that the ongoing campaign for the ensuing elections will end at

Turkey is working to open two more border gates with Syria to enable the delivery of humanitarian aid to its neighbour which also suffers from massive earthquakes, Turkish Foreign Minister said

Already overburdened with Kuki-Chin refugees from strife-torn Myanmar, Mizoram, which is reeling under a financial crisis, received a fresh stream of displaced people from the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh this year. More than 300 Kuki-Chin refugees from CHT took shelter in the northeastern state following armed clashes between Bangladesh Army and insurgents belonging to the Kuki-Chin National Army (KNA). The state now hosts a total of 40,000 refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh. Mizos share ethnic ties with the Kuki-Chin people. The Zoramthanga administration is reeling under a severe financial crunch due to the COVID-19 pandemic and delay by the Centre in releasing the state's share of taxes and grants. The crisis has resulted in delays in timely payment of salaries to government employees, and pensions to retirees, besides clearance of bills. However, the state government hopes that the crisis will be resolved in 2023 with the release of more funds from the ...

Uncertainty over the true scale of infections without reliable official figures is fueling concern that the rapid spread of the virus could lead to the emergence of new variants

Nepal and India have engaged in a new diplomatic row after Nepali citizens pelted stones at Indian nationals on the order side of the border over the embankment construction by the Indian side

A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Biden administration to lift the Trump-era asylum restrictions that have been a cornerstone of border enforcement since the beginning of COVID-19. US District Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled in Washington that enforcement must end immediately for families and single adults, calling the ban "arbitrary and capricious". The administration has not applied it to children travelling alone. Sullivan, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, wrote in a 49-page ruling that authorities failed to consider the impact on migrants and possible alternatives. The ruling appears to conflict with another in May by a federal judge in Louisiana that kept the asylum restrictions. If Sullivan's ruling stands, it would upend border enforcement. Migrants have been expelled from the United States more than 2.4 million times since the rule took effect in March 2020, denying migrants rights to seek asylum under US and international law on grounds of preventing the spread

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said that the political compulsions of the day should not make the country's borders vulnerable or harm the larger interest of the nation. The union minister, while interacting with the students at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta, said that the temporary provision given under Article 370 to Jammu and Kashmir continued for more than 70 years due to the "politics of the day". "It is important to put the national interest first. Politics of the day should not hamper the larger interest of the nation. All politicians should have that approach in the first place, he said, adding that politics of the day should not lead our borders to be vulnerable. Speaking on the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, Jaishankar rhetorically asked what was the reason for a temporary provision to continue so long other than the politics of the day. "The fact that we had such a messy issue there... the whole world used it," he ...

As thousands of farmers reached Jantar Mantar to attend a 'mahapanchayat', massive traffic jams were witnessed on Monday at Delhi border including Ghazipur and Singhu, with some of the commuters getting stuck for more than an hour amid curbs put in place by the police, officials said. They said all vehicles entering the capital are being checked and the police personnel are on 'alert mode'. Long queue of vehicles were seen at the Ghazipur and Singhu border as each one was being checked by the police. This is part of the security arrangements put in place in view of the 'mahapanchayat', said a senior police officer. Massive traffic jam was also witnessed near on roads adjoining the borders, including, Karnal road, Libas Pur, Samaypur Badali, Narela. The police said security has been beefed up at Delhi borders due to the 'mahapanchayat' called by farmers' body. Abhimanyu Singh Kohar, SKM (non-political) member and organiser of the 'mahapanchayat' had earlier said the congregation is

Along with the restrictions imposed by DMRC, Delhi Traffic Police on Thursday also issued an advisory related to the routes that will remain close on Independence Day

The BSF troops noticed a suspicious movement in Arnia sector near the International Border (IB) in Jammu, officials said on Monday

The Chinese authorities have built border villages close to the LAC that can be used for dual purposes, says General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Command, Lt Gen R P Kalita

Nepal government has decided to seal the border entry points with India and China for 72 hours prior to the local level elections scheduled for May 13, local media reported.The decision comes following a recommendation by the Election Commission urging the government to close the border points from May 10 midnight to May 13 midnight, The Kathmandu Post reported.Nepal's Home Ministry spokesperson Phanindra Mani Pokharel informed that a directive has been issued to the respective district administration offices of the districts bordering India and China to implement the commission's recommendations."Districts sharing borders with neighbouring countries have been directed to seal the border points and halt all movements, except for emergency services, for 72 hours ahead of the May 13 local elections," The Kathmandu Post quoted Pokharel as saying.Pokharel said the ministry has also directed local administrations and security agencies to strictly implement the silent hour as per the ...

The viewing point, which will be the first in the state, will be developed as a major tourist attraction, officials said on Friday

Australia on Mondaywelcomed its first international tourists in almost two years after reopening its border which was shut in early 2020 in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Most state Governors and chief ministers spoke of the long-awaited solution to border issues between the states, many of which are now near finalisation