Security tightened at Indo-Nepal border amid reports of inmates fleeing jails

Security has been heightened across all points of the Indo-Nepal border in the backdrop of reports that over 3000 prisoners have fled the jails in the country, officials aware of the matter said adding that the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel apprehended five such prisoners at the Indo-Nepal border in Uttar Pradesh’s Siddharth Nagar. The SSB, a paramilitary force under the Union home ministry, guards the Indo-Nepal border across the country. There are six immigration integrated check posts, 50 transit routes between India and Nepal.

SSB personnel with Nepal’s Armed Police ForcePolice ForcePolice Force (APF) personnel after the India-Nepal border was sealed for regular movement. (PTI photo)

A senior officer, who asked not to be named, said, “All field commanders are on the ground as directed by the headquarters. There were reports that over 3,000 prisoners had fled. The six prisoners caught at the Siddharth Nagar border had entered the country and were caught swiftly. They were not carrying any arms or ammunition. Vigilance is stringent and every vehicle is being checked.”