The Border Security Force (BSF) has reported that small Chinese-made drones, carrying narcotics are flying over from across the border into Punjab and Jammu regions.

According to the BSF, these flights are a ”cause of concern” and technology solutions are being scouted actively, BSF director general (DG) Pankaj Kumar Singh said on Tuesday. The BSF is looking for ”low-cost technology solutions, smart fencing’, sensors, radars, and even countering the drones or the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) threat,” he said.

On the eve of the 57th Raising Day of the paramilitary, Singh told reporters that the BSF has seen at least 67 drone sightings in this year of drones along India’s western border with Pakistan. ”Right now, the frequency of drones that are coming to our country are fairly small and these are by-and-large Chinese-made drones…they are very good…and carrying small payloads and in 95 per cent cases they are carrying drugs.”

”We have installed some kind of anti-drone systems at the border and they are working fairly ok but we are in the process of getting more and more technology,” DG Singh said. He, however, added that covering the entire 2,300 km (of India-Pakistan border) with anti-drone system will cost a lost and hence a ”trade-off” can be thought upon.

Like if we have a vital installation or important asset on the border the anti-drone system to safeguard it can be installed there first, followed by other locations, Singh said. ”There is no fool proof system available in the entire world (regarding counter-drone tech)…there is no way as of now by which we can intercept, stall or make them (drones) de-active. We are in the process…this (getting anti-drone technology) is our number one priority I can tell you,” he said.

He told reporters that two drones have been shot down along the Pakistan border, he said and they have also come across instances of drones carrying weapons payload from across the Pakistan border into India and ”dropping them into our area”.

The BSF is now in constant touch with intelligence agencies and state police about these droppings as flights carrying narcotics or weapons have to be picked by someone on the Indian side and the DG also appreciated the Punjab Police and said they getting ”wonderful cooperation” from them.

Regarding the underground tunnels found in the Jammu area, Singh said the force is keeping a vigil on this activity and devising new methods to check these structures that aid infiltration.

The BSF is a 2.65 lakh para-military force raised on December 1, 1965, and is responsible for guarding over 6,300 km of the Indian fronts with Pakistan on the west and Bangladesh on the east.

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