The committee members, who travelled in border areas recently, are convinced that without a large number of bullet-proof bunkers, better equipment and infrastructure, future battles will be difficult to fight and win.
The standing committee on defence in parliament will discuss a proposal on Thursday to provide bullet-proof bunkers to jawans posted on the Indo-Pak border.
The committee members, who travelled in border areas recently, are convinced that without a large number of bullet-proof bunkers, better equipment and infrastructure, future battles will be difficult to fight and win.
Over a dozen members of the committee visited border areas in Jammu and Kashmir in the middle of June. They travelled along the borders in Leh and Uri and also visited Pangong on the Sino-Indian border.
A source told DNA, “Being at a lower height and without cover, Indian troops seem to be vulnerable. Plus, there are gaping holes on the vast Indo-Pak border which need to be plugged. Therefore, not just more bunkers but bullet-proof bunkers are required. Infrastructure is also lacking and the border road organisation needs to become active.”
The 30-member all-party committee is headed by Satpal Maharaj of Congress. After the Lok Sabha election, small groups of committee members were formed and sent to borders and defence bases to get a feel of the conditions there.
The first group was hosted by the Srinagar-based 15 Corps. More visits are being planned to north Sikkim along the Sino-Indian border, the North East and Indian Air Force and naval bases.
Jammu and Kashmir Police had recently identified around 25 infiltration routes — 21 along the line of control (LoC) and four along the international border.
Infiltration attempts went up from 342 in 2008 to 485 in 2009. The 700-km LoC has a three-tier fencing put up in 2004, but the border is still porous.
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