India to fence border with Myanmar

By Ahmad Adil

NEW DELHI (AA) – India will fence the border with conflict-hit neighbor Myanmar, the country’s home minister said on Saturday.

Home Minister Amit Shah said the federal government has decided that the entire India-Myanmar border will be fenced on the same lines as the India-Bangladesh border.

Speaking during an event in the northeastern state of Assam, Shah said the government is rethinking the free movement agreement with Myanmar, which will be ended.

India shares a 1,643 kilometers (1,020 miles) long border with Myanmar which passes through several states.

A free movement regime exists between the two countries, according to which, citizens from the two countries, living within 16 kilometers (around 10 miles) on both sides of the border can cross the border on the production of border passes.

Thousands of people from Myanmar, which is entangled in an internal ethnic conflict, have so far crossed into the Indian side, seeking refuge. Other than the civilians, soldiers too have entered India.

A few hundred soldiers from Myanmar crossed into the Indian side this week.

Early this month, Indian army chief Gen. Manoj Pande had warned that some of the Burmese insurgent groups were attempting to enter India in the northeast state of Manipur.

Manipur continues to witness incidents of violence, with eight people killed this week.

Manipur witnessed ethnic clashes last year, which resulted in the deaths of at least 180 people and affected thousands of others.

Myanmar has been under junta rule since February 2021 and the military, locally known as Tatmadaw, has faced severe resistance from ethnic groups in many regions of the country.

At least three ethnic armed groups, which united under the so-called Brotherhood Alliance, have been fighting the junta regime to take control in the northern parts of Myanmar since late October.

The groups are attacking junta forces, which rule the Buddhist-majority Southeast Asian nation, capturing many towns and junta outposts.

Many people have been reported killed during the attacks.