While the existing BSOs have strength much less than what has been demanded by the APF, which has the responsibility for border security, the government has again failed to set up the offices in many bordering districts. [break]
The then government on February 20, 2007 had decided to establish Armed Police Force Border Security Offices in the wake of increasing cross-border criminal activities on the part of various armed outfits operating in southern part of the country.
Besides checking cross-border criminal activities and smuggling of illegal goods, the BSOs manned with APF personnel are mandated to monitor the status of border pillars and check border encroachment.
The government has set up the BSOs in various 18 districts, each of them manned by 237 APF personnel. The districts having BSOs include Jhapa, Sunsari, Morang, Saptari, Siraha, Rautahat, Dhanusha, Sarlahi, Mahottari, Bara, Parsa and Nawalparasi. Rupandehi, Kapilvastu, Banke, Bardiya, Kailali and Kanchanpur are among the districts where the BSOs have been established, according to the APF headquarters.
Senior officials at the APF headquarters said they have not been able to fulfill their mandates effectively due to lack of adequate force strength and vehicles and other resources for their mobility.
Originally, the APF had conceived the idea of setting up BSOs in each bordering district with 761-personnel Battalion. The idea was that the BSOs would set up additional Border Out Posts (BOPs) to cover entire border area in their respective districts.
"We have neither adequate number of force strength. Nor we have enough number of vehicles for patrolling," complained a senior APF official, preferring to be unnamed. "This has affected fulfilling our mandate."
The APF has some 26,000 strength at present.
Besides providing back support in the event of riot to Nepal Police, the APF has also taken responsibility of securing district headquarters and vital government installations.
The ministry´s spokesperson Nabin Ghimire said the ministry has made a plan to set up BSOs in all bordering districts. "Finance ministry rejected our proposal for additional recruitment last year citing resource constraint," he said. "We have made a fresh proposal to this effect this year."
Ghimire said that the number of BSOs would be increased and reinforcements would be sent to the existing BSOs once they get budget to recruit additional strength.
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