BSF needs to be more alert to check cow smuggling: Rajnath

He added that he had asked the Union Home Secretary to create a national “think tank” that would work to ensure India’s security in all its spheres.

The minister said a plan has been chalked out to ensure that the country’s land borders are “absolutely safe” and “fool-proof”, while the government is putting in place technological solutions like laser walls and surveillance gadgets to keep security at the frontiers ‘chust durust’ (fit and fine) at all times.

In his keynote speech on the topic ‘Border Management in Changing Scenario’, organised by the BSF here, Singh said forces would have to be alert and alive to ensure India’s economic security and prosperity as some elements, including some neighbours, have cast their evil eye and perpetrated ‘naapak’ (unholy) activities against the country.

There are “some deficiencies” in border management, the minister said, adding: “we are trying to make the scenario more alert and secure”.

“Cow smuggling has been taking place for many years now... I congratulate BSF jawans for bringing down the numbers from 23 lakh to 3-3.5 lakh. I would like to exhort the BSF jawans and officers that to check cow smuggling, we will have be more alert and vigilant. This has to stop,” Singh said.

He said apart from these steps, it was essential to get the support of state governments to check the menace and his ministry had already written to them on the matter.

The minister said he was confident about the capabilities of the security forces, who guard the country’s frontiers, and based on that he could say that no one could “dare” look upon Indian borders. “The incidents of infiltration have come down by 50 per cent and a large number of terrorists have been killed. I give the credit for this to the bravery of our security personnel,” he said.

Talking about India’s economy, he asserted that his government was “determined” to make it grow up to the level of “double digits”. He said the Indian economy’s growth rate was 3-3.5 per cent during independence in 1947 and it was then called the ‘Hindu growth rate’, which moves at the pace of a tortoise.

In 1998, Singh said the growth rate went up to 8.4 per cent and kept steady for sometime. “We are proud of the respect that India commands across the globe...World ranking agencies have called India the fastest growing economy,” he said.

Getting back on the issue of border security, he said despite deploying all technology solutions, troops would always remain the most important component to secure the frontiers. He urged the security agencies to remain cautious against the nefarious “proxy war” being conducted against them and the country by using information technology tools.

The minister said some time ago a committee was constituted to analyse the ground situation and suggest measures to fortify Indian borders, even as he asked BSF, the largest border guarding force of the country, to ensure that the men on ground are put to training “regularly” and that they do not suffer stress. “As soon as the committee (headed by former Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta) submits report to us, we will take its cognisance,” he said.

“Also try, as much as you (BSF top brass) can, that troops deployed on the borders do not have to undergo any kind of stress. I don't need to tell you how to do this,” he told the BSF brass, led by DG KK Sharma.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday dismissed allegations of political “interference” in the Malegaon blast case investigation conducted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), saying that probe agencies in the country function with “full-fledged autonomy”.