Thakurgaon, June 8 (UNB): The Indian Border Security Force (BSF) has taken back 11 people, including a sixth-grade student and her pregnant mother, after they remained stranded for nearly 48 hours at the zero line along the Mashalgaon border in Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon.
The group was removed from the border area and taken back into India around 3 am on Monday, said Lieutenant Colonel Abdullah Al Moin Hasan, commanding officer of Dinajpur Battalion (42 BGB).
The group comprised three men, four women and four children.
Among them were sixth-grader Rozina Akhter, her nine-month-pregnant mother and her younger brother, who has a disability.
The group had been staying at the zero line in difficult conditions after an alleged attempt by the BSF to push them into Bangladesh through an area near border pillar 349/7-S under the Mashalgaon Border Outpost (BOP) in the early hours of June 6.
After receiving information, a BGB patrol team rushed to the spot and prevented them from entering Bangladesh.
During preliminary questioning, the individuals told BGB members that they had been living in Dum Dum area of West Bengal.
FE report Adds: The government has deployed Ansar and Village Defence Party (Ansar-VDP) members in 11 border districts to protect national sovereignty, strengthen border security and prevent cross-border crimes.
Deputy Director (Public Relations) of Ansar-VDP, Md Ashikuzzaman, disclosed the development in a press statement issued on Monday.
He said that Ansar and VDP members have been integrated into border areas, making border management and security operations more coordinated and effective under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in 2025.
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