Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh for an early decision to raise Strike Corps in North-East; Meet on border haats between India and Bangladesh put off
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    • According to reports, against the backdrop of recent Chinese incursion, Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh is understood to have pressed the government for an early decision on a proposal to raise a Strike Corps in the Northeast to meet any security threat in the eastern sector. This issue is believed to have figured when the Army Chief briefed Defence Minister AK Antony on the prevailing security situation along the Line of Actual Control in the wake of the recent incursion by Chinese troops in Ladakh. The meeting was also attended by top security brass of the country, including National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon and Defence Secretary Shashikant Sharma. 1

    Reports noted that a high-level India-Bangladesh meeting on setting up of Border Haats (border markets) along the frontier in Tripura has been postponed due to cyclonic storm 'Mahasen'. It would be worth noting that to enhance trade, Bangladesh and India have agreed to set up a number of Border Haats along the frontier which is expected to witness bilateral trade worth Rs.108 crore ($20 million) every year. India and Bangladesh set up the first such Border Haat at Kalaichar in Meghalaya's West Garo Hills district in 2011. Dhaka and New Delhi are keen to set up eight more border markets along the 1,880-km-long India-Bangladesh border stretching across the four northeastern states of Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Assam. 2

    In other developments, according to reports, the tussle between Ministry of Home Affairs and Defence Ministry over operational control of Assam Rifles continues, with Union Home Minister, Sushil Kumar Shinde on May 15 clarifying that a final decision on the issue has yet to be taken. The clash between the two Central Ministries over control of Assam Rifles, country’s oldest para-military regiment has been on since 2010. It would be worth noting that Assam Rifles is under administrative control of Home Ministry but under operational control of Defence Ministry. 3

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