India tightens security along Pakistan border, orders removal of encroachments within 15 km

India has launched an aggressive new border security initiative, with Home Minister Amit Shah ordering the demolition of all illegal structures within 15 kilometres of the frontier with Pakistan, signalling a significant hardening of New Delhi's posture toward its neighbour. Shah chaired a high-level security review meeting in Bikaner, assessing security-related issues concerning the border districts of Rajasthan along the India-Pakistan border. The meeting was attended by Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and senior state and district officials.

The Ministry of Home Affairs directed authorities to strictly enforce a zero-tolerance policy against illegal constructions and demolish all such structures that have come up over the years. The sweep covers a vast and sensitive stretch of territory India's frontier with Pakistan, including the de facto border through disputed Kashmir, runs for approximately 3,300 kilometres.

The demolition drive is just one component of a sweeping security overhaul. The Ministry of Home Affairs has assigned enhanced responsibilities to district magistrates to ensure legal and financial compliance of banking transactions in border areas, verify large business establishments, examine their funding sources, track mule accounts and false companies, identify fake Aadhaar cards, and control cross-border smuggling.

A major focus of the meeting was the increasing threat posed by cross-border narcotics trafficking. Shah directed border districts to conduct detailed studies into the operational patterns, local networks, financial channels, and support systems behind drug trafficking, with instructions to develop long-term solutions to permanently dismantle criminal ecosystems rather than relying on periodic crackdowns.

The Home Minister also emphasised coordinated border management involving the Border Security Force, Central Board of Direct Taxes, Narcotics Control Bureau, intelligence agencies, and Rajasthan Police. A review and feedback on these issues will be undertaken again after two months, with districts required to ensure result-oriented action, the ministry warned, underlining the seriousness with which New Delhi is treating the border security threat.