Cattle smuggling on rise in Sunamganj border areas

Rampant smuggling of Indian cattle through the borders in Sunamganj district has continued despite recurring drives by different law enforcement agencies, especially Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).

BGB on Monday seized eight cattle worth about Tk 3.3 lakh in Madhanagor under Chinakandi border area in Sadar upazila of Sunamganj district. They seized 11 cattle worth about Tk 5.5 lakh from Matirabon border area in the district on October 16, and five cattle on October 28.

Powerful syndicates of cattle smugglers bring cattle through border points in the district from the neighbouring country and send them to different parts of the country.

Border areas of Tekerghat in Taherpur upazila and Naraontola in Sadar upazila are safe zones for drug smugglers, locals said.

Sources said the people who bring the cattle from the border are paid Tk 1,000 to Tk 2,000 per cow, depending on its size. The rate increases if the authorities impose restrictions.

Smugglers usually prefer the routes in different border areas of Sunamganj as a few rivers there make the task easy, said source said.

BGB Commanding Officer Lt Col Nasir Uddin Ahmed told this correspondent that the law enforcers have zero tolerance regarding cattle smuggling, and border killing takes place mainly because of smuggling.

He said if cattle smuggling was reduced border killings would also become less. He added that communication problems prevent proper patrolling in the border areas of the district.