The government is about to give the Border Security Force (BSF) formal approval to raise 16 additional battalions, totaling around 17,000 soldiers, and to create two key field headquarters.
In order to meet the increased security demands brought on by recent geopolitical events and incidents, such as the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh and the Pahalgam massacre on the Pakistani front on April 22, this expansion aims to strengthen the BSF’s operational capabilities along the India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh borders.
The idea, which has already received the Union Home Ministry’s approval in principle, is awaiting the Union Finance Ministry’s final approval, which should come soon.
To protect a total 6,726 km of frontier, including 2,290 km of the India-Pakistan International Border, 339 km along the Line of Control (LoC), and 4,097 km shared with Bangladesh, the BSF currently has 193 battalions, each of which normally consists of more than 1,000 troops.
Due to difficult riverine and rainforest terrain, a significant portion of these borders—roughly 1,047 km—remain unfenced, requiring strong infrastructure for monitoring and surveillance. Across these fronts, the military presently maintains 1,760 border posts.
Two new field command bases will be created as part of the expansion: one in Mizoram to increase border surveillance with Bangladesh, and another in Jammu to strengthen security along the India-Pakistan International Border in Jammu and Punjab.
The deputy inspector general (DIG) rank officers will be in charge of these sectors. While the Mizoram and Cachar frontier, with its headquarters in Assam, runs sectors at Silchar, Aizawl, and one in Manipur, the Jammu frontier’s current command structure consists of sectors at Rajouri, Sunderbani, Jammu, and Indreshwar Nagar.
To fill the new roles, the BSF will conduct massive hiring campaigns and then offer in-depth training courses. It is estimated that it will take five to six years to raise these sixteen battalions and establish the field headquarters.
The BSF first proposed the force expansion a few years ago, citing the need to increase combat tasks in anti-Naxal operations, changing security dynamics, and topographical challenges. The government has agreed to increase 16 battalions, which will greatly improve border security and operational readiness, even though the force had requested authority for 20–21 additional battalions.
The BSF is strategically reinforced by this expansion, which will guarantee that it is prepared to handle new threats and keep watch over India’s most delicate and difficult frontiers.
