Cross-border tunnel: BSF seeks help from Army, GSI

The BSF has sought help from Army, Geological Survey of India and other allied agencies for uncovering the remaining portion of the 400-m long cross-border tunnel detected in Samba sector.

Authorities on July 28 had detected the tunnel at a depth of 25 ft below the ground level along the Indo-Pak border in Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir.

The tunnel was detected when an area near Chillayari Border Out Post caved-in at two-three places after rains.

The tunnel, with a dimension of 3x3 ft and having air supply through 2-inch pipe, has been dug out between two sides along the international border on India's Chillayari Border Out Post and Pakistan's Numberiyal Border Out Post.

"We have requested experts from Army authorities, GSI, Geo-physics and seismology departments besides Geology and Mining to conduct digging to find out the extension and opening of the tunnel," Inspector General, BSF Headquarters, New Delhi, S K Mishra told reporters at Chillary Border Out Post here.

Besides these officials, help would be also sought from satellite imagery from ISRO, Mishra said adding that, "we will later take further action after it".

"We have been digging the tunnel further. We don't know where is tunnel going, where is its opening point...we did not found so far," the IG said.

"The alignment is straight towards border fencing -- if you have seen the alignment, the tunnel is extending towards the border...So far, we have have reached the middle of the tunnel," he said

The BSF official, who led the team from Delhi for inspection of site in Chachwal border hamlet, said the tunnel was constructed possibly with the purpose of infiltration and smuggling into Indian side.

Meanwhile, fear has gripped locals in the border area after the discovery of the tunnel.

"The detection of the tunnel into our Chachwal border belt has created fear among our people. Our people have spent sleepless nights after its detection...," villager Parveen Singh told this PTI correspondent here.

With a population of over 2,000 villagers, Chachwal hamlet is located barely one kilometre from International Border and 65 km from Jammu city.

"We have never seen such a tunnel even during the peak of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir or even at the height of the border conflict," he said.

Like Parveen, Lumderdar Som Singh said "our fears have doubled after the detection of the tunnel in our paddy fields.

Authorities are yet to find out details of the tunnel."

Another villager, Harnaam Singh, said that the locals want the authorities to ascertain that there were no more other tunnels in the area.

People living close to the international border in Jammu sector too had similar story of fear gripping them.

The villagers of Gallar, Kukrenwala, Garkhal, Pargwal, Chinore farm, Abdullian, Suchetgarh, Jabowal, Korotana fear the presence of such tunnels in their areas. They demanded that BSF personnel carry out searches in their areas.