Forensic analysis of drones shot down on the India-Pakistan border has left security agencies worried, as in some cases, drones were found to have originated from the Indian side of the border.
A senior official confirmed that as of now, they have found only some cases, but this trend could go up in the future. Smugglers would dispatch a drone from India to Pakistan, where it is loaded with drugs and weapons and called back to India, the official said. The official said that ‘reverse drone’ operations by smugglers at borders is a major concern for security agencies at the India-Pakistan border, especially the Punjab region, where drone activity is frequent.
“Forensic analysis of the recovered drones have helped to trace their flight path with time stamps, originating and landing points with exact GPS coordinates. In some cases, we have also decoded messages exchanged between traffickers on either side of the border,” the official said.
Anti-drone systems have been installed at the border and it keeps track and shoots any drone activity at borders, said another official. The official added that in case the drone comes from Pakistan and drops narcotics in Indian territory, it requires a lot of manpower to collect dropped items and also there is a huge probability of getting caught by police or the Border Security Force (BSF). In the case of ‘reverse drone,’ the smugglers deliver the items to a suitable location with less human interference involved.
A few days ago, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann had also raised concern over drones that are sent from the border districts of Punjab to Pakistan to smuggle drugs into the state. He also said that registration of drugs should be made compulsory to check the smuggling of drugs and weapons.
