West Bengal Hands Over 142 Acres of Land to BSF for Border Fencing: Suvendu Adhikari

Kolkata, May 2028 : West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday said that the state government has handed over a total of 142.79 acres of land to the Border Security Force for the construction of border outposts and barbed-wire fencing along the India-Bangladesh border.

Sharing the information in a post on X, Adhikari said the state government had intensified efforts to strengthen border security by facilitating infrastructure development for the BSF in sensitive border areas.

“Govt of WB has initiated intensified measures to strengthen border security by facilitating construction of BSF outposts and barbed-wire fencing, further enhancing security in the border areas. Additional land has now been handed over to BSF, taking the total tally to 142.79 acres,” he wrote.

The Chief Minister also released district-wise details of the land transferred for the project. According to the figures shared by him, the highest allocation has been made in Murshidabad district with 38.805 acres, followed by Jalpaiguri with 35.165 acres and Cooch Behar with 22.95 acres.

Land has also been handed over in South Dinajpur (20.1701 acres), Malda (10.90 acres), Darjeeling (8.815 acres), North Dinajpur (2.84 acres), North 24 Parganas (2.6 acres) and Nadia (0.55 acres).

Adhikari said the initiative was part of the commitment made during the first Cabinet meeting of the newly formed government on May 11. He added that the state was moving towards its target of handing over 500 acres of land to the BSF within 45 days.

During the Cabinet meeting earlier this month, the Chief Minister had announced that land required for fencing work along the Bangladesh border would be transferred on priority. He had also alleged that the previous All India Trinamool Congress government had delayed land transfer for border fencing, thereby encouraging infiltration.

The issue had also come under judicial scrutiny recently. In April, a division bench of the Calcutta High Court comprising Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen expressed dissatisfaction over delays in handing over land despite compensation reportedly being paid by the Centre.

While hearing a petition related to pending fencing work along the India-Bangladesh border, the High Court imposed a personal fine of Rs 25,000 on the Joint Director of the state Land and Land Reforms Department for failing to ensure timely transfer of land.

The latest move by the state government is being viewed as a significant step towards strengthening border infrastructure and enhancing security along the international boundary.