Satkhira border areas go on high alert as COVID-19 cases rise in India

The border areas of Satkhira district have been put on high alert in view of a surge in Covid-19 cases in neighbouring India.

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel have been asked to step up vigil along the border with India so as to prevent the entry of people from the neighbouring country without the mandatory health checks, reports UNB.

The commanding officer of Satkhira BGB-33 Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Al Mahmud, said, "The spread of the Indian Covid-19 variant has pushed the neighbouring country's healthcare system on the brink.

"We don't want a similar situation in Bangladesh. So, we are keeping a strict vigil on the bordering areas. The idea is to make people legally entering the country undergo the mandatory checks and quarantine, and stop the illegal entry of people."

The border guards have identified the Bhomra, Gazipur, Kushkhali, Kaliani, Madra, Kakdanga and Toluigacha border areas of the district as vulnerable, he said.

A total of 590 mobile patrol teams are working to ensure the movement of people in the border areas. Already the BGB patrol teams have detained eight people for sneaking into the country without valid documents and handed them over to police.

"We are doing our best to protect our borders," said Mahmud. "The border guard personnel are also alerting people time and again about the Covid restrictions in the country."