The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has cleared a proposal to set up X-ray based Full Body Truck Scanning System (FBTSS) at five check posts located on India-Pakistan, India-Nepal and India-Bangladesh borders in order to curb smuggling of narcotics and arms from across the border.
The proposal, first mooted by the erstwhile UPA Government in 2012, to install full-body truck scanners had seen little progress in the last two years of the UPA regime.
But, the suicide bombing at the Pakistan side of Wagah border in November 2014, had prompted the BJP-led NDA Government to review the security situations on all important border TRADE points and expedite the important proposals.
According to MHA officials, the full-body truck scanners will be installed at Attari-Wagah integrated check posts, Petrapole integrated check post on India-Bangladesh border, Raxaul integrated check post on India-Nepal border, Uri-Salamabad check post and Poonch-Chakkan-da-bagh by September-October 2016.
Officials said after several incidents in the past due to manual checking of the trucks, demand for full-body truck scanners was made by the security agencies.
While Pakistan had already installed these scanners at a few check-points on its side, the Centre’s proposal had become casualty of the UPA’s policy paralysis.
After the inauguration of modern facilities at Attari in 2012, then Home Minister P Chidambaram had promised to install full-body scanners.
The same promise was repeated when Sushilkumar Shinde took charge at the North Block.
“Once operational, the full-body truck scanner system can detect misdeclaration of goods, grades and even concealment of contraband goods, including arms, drugs and fake Indian currency notes. The hi-tech system can also detect contraband items hidden inside cavities or specially created spaces in the carrier or consignments,†officials said.
