Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force (ITBPF) was raised on 24th
October 1962 after the Indo-China conflict to guard the northern borders of the
country. Incredible though it may appear, ITBP which took off as a micro outfit
with just 4 battalions has grown to gigantic proportions with 45 service battalions
and 4 specialized battalions. This month
the Force enters golden jubilee year of its formation. The raison d’etre of the ITB Police is guarding and policing the
Indo-Tibet Border, providing a sense of security to the border populace, VIP
security and internal security duties, disaster management etc.
A solid 3488 km of staggering mountains with an
astounding variety of shaky heights ranging between 9000 to 18700 feet from mean
sea level (MSL), chilly locales where mercury plummets to 45 degree C below
zero, bottomless gorges, enchanting ravines, tempestuous
rivers, perfidious glaciers, craggy steeps, lurking natural hazards-that is the
typical theatre of operation ITBP men and officers spend a lion share of their
services career in. It extends from Karakorum
pass (old trade route to Tibet in J&K) to Diphu
La in Arunachal Pradesh.
ITBP Ethos
ITBPF
ethos are succinctly expressed in its logo i.e. chivalry, steadfastness
commitment. An ITBPean
is true to his salt, steadfast in duty, and undeterred by adverse conditions,
man-made, or nature-made. His creed:
improvisation and maximum utilisation of resources at hand.
Role of the Force
The Force saw action in the Indo-Pak conflicts in 1965. It fought the enemy away from the designated
theatre of a war, conducted combing operation to annihilate Pakistani infiltrators
and paratroopers and guarded vital installations. In the 1971 war, two of its battalions
performed the special tasks of sealing certain areas/gaps detection and destruction
of infiltrators’ bases in the Srinagar valley and Poonch
sector, a maiden mission which earned plaudit.
National imperatives in 1978 redefined the Force’s role
and what followed was a change in its basic nature. Multifarious tasks were handed over to it
making it a multi dimensional force.
ITBP
protects the IB in its area of responsibility, joins them in controlling
trans-border crime and intelligence collection, interrogates smugglers and
infiltrators and conducts joint patrolling along the international
border/LAC. ITBPF functions in close synchronisation
with army in sensitive areas. In peace
time, it attunes and gears itself professionally to meet the real challenges as
and when they are put to face.
ITBP
has made an epoch making entry into the North-East as it was assigned the
responsibility of the Eastern Sector of Indo-China Borders in Sikkim and
Arunachal Pradesh, in 2003 in pursuance to GOM’s recommendation, i.e. ‘One
Border, One Force.’
The borders guarding duties in the Eastern sector is more
challenging and harsh than in the western and middle due to scanty road
connectivity. Apart from border
guarding, the Force is also performing Internal
security duties in the north eastern states. ITBP has its forward posts much
ahead of the other Forces, in higher altitudes.
ITBP personnel have to constantly fight against blizzards, avalanches,
and land-slides.
Additional Responsibilities
Till 1982, this Force kept its activities confined to the
Himalayas, but sensing the pulse of the time and setting the sights high, the
personnel of this force were also trained and suitably equipped to take on
other challenges as well. The ITBPF
performed the most delicate yet high risk security duties during the ASIAD 1982
wherein its personnel were engaged in providing fool proof security cover to
the various stadia, contingents of different countries as well as Games village
Complex and to various VVIPs.
Training Personnel for
Tough Tasks
By
virtue of the role assigned to this Force at initial stages, the area of its
activities remained in the wild and vertical world of the Himalayas where
mighty forces of the nature rule supreme.
Though policing the frontier against the hostile elements from across
the border was not much of the problem with adequate training to the personal,
but the most challenging task was to survive in such inhospitable places.
Accordingly, before deployment to the higher reaches of
Himalayas, the force personnel are given extensive training in rock climbing,
mountaineering and mountain warfare with more thrust towards guerrilla
operations to make them highly proficient soldiers.
HAMTS
High
Altitude Medical Training School (HAMTS) was conceptualised and formally
inaugurated at Leh on 17th July 2009. The
main idea was to train paramedics in the diagnosis and management of various
high altitude ailments and diseases and their management. ITBP being a paramilitary force deployed at
high attitudes in large numbers, it was considered very pertinent and apt to
have a training centre which would impart practical training to paramedics and
doctors in diagnosis, treatment and management of high attitude ailments and
update them on the various equipments available and the use thereof. High
altitude medicines as such is not covered in the MBBS curriculum in India as a
result of which even doctors are not aware of the various high altitude ailments
and may at times find themselves in a difficult situation when asked to treat
such patients in high altitude forward posts. Since its inception in July 2009,
two main courses run by HAMTS are: Basic HA course for medics – 2 week
duration; and Induction course for medical officers – 1 week duration
Till
date eight batches of basic high altitude course for medics and 3 induction
courses for medical officers have been completed, with a total strength of 193
trainees trained so far. Till recently
this institute was being run by pooling the resources from the available Bns, whether in the form of trainers, medical officers or
infrastructure etc. But with the formal sanction of dedicated staff for this
training institute now, one can look forward to a very ambitious expansion plan
in the future. This institute is the
only of its kind in our country and the first one to help train doctors and
paramedics in high altitude maladies.
A Welfare Face
Spending better part of their service career in
intractable Himalayan heights at the mercy of stark elements and away from
family takes its toll. The Force shares
the concerns of the jawans and ensures they do not
lose their sleep over them. Battalions
are rotated from hard to soft medical check ups, speedy evacuation and a good
tide-up with Army hospitals helps, jawans’ families
can avail medical aid from nearby ITBP units.
Civic Action Programs
To provide a sense of security to the border population
and win there hearts and minds, ITBPF construct/repairs roads and bridges in
remote border areas, help them at times of natural disaster and run medical and
veterinary camps. Throughout its place
of deployment, ITBPF maintains a cordial relationship with the local a
benevolent force to the border populace.
ITBP
has launched a massive programme to develop villages in the remote and
inaccessible areas of the Indo-China border for undertaking essential
development activities and extending basic medical amenities. ITBP is involved in diverse areas such as
public hygiene and sanitation, adult and child education, setting up of
periodic medical camps, addressing problems of drinking water, electrification
and building basic structure with ‘shramadan’ and
support of the local official.
ITBP has opened many rural telephone exchanges in Ladakh and many of its forwards posts are interconnected
with satellite telephones. The ITBP
personal as well as the local population of the area can avail this facility at
nominal rates. During landslides and
flash floods in Leh last year, ITBP was among the
first who came forward for rescue and rehabilitation work in the affected
areas. It set up relief camps and make shift medical camps to provide succour
to those in distress. ITBP’s effort earned the praise of locals in these
endeavours.
Sports
ITBP personnel have also excelled in various sports. The
Force is a byword for international mountaineering. It has hoisted the Indian
tricolour atop more than 165 world- class mountains
including Everest (5 times) and Kanchenjunga.
India’s highest peak, Nanda Devi, Mount Kamet in the Himalayas and those
in the Alps, Iran and USA also figure in the list. The crowning glory was
achieved by the Force when it created history by putting 8 climbers including
one lady police officer atop Mount Everest on 10th and 12th
May 1992.
Skiing is its forte.
National Champions for years, ITBP recorded the first ever ski down from
Kamet peak in 1981. Earlier ITBP skiers
had skied down from Trushul (23360 ft.) in May 1997
and Kedar Dome (24410 ft.) in April 1978. Regaining National Champions in Skiing, ITBP
has defended the title several times and has represented India twice in the
Winter Olympics Games and Asian Winter Games.
River rafting is yet another field where ITBPeans have made their singular mark. They have negotiated a
1100 km long stretch of the ferocious white waters of the turbulent and mighty
river Brahmputra in 1991 from Gelling in Arunachal
Pradesh upto the border of Bangladesh. None had dared to achieve such a feat in the
last 200 years. Its personnel also hold rare distinction of being part of
scientific expedition to Antarctica.
Each year, ITBP trains members of all scientific expedition to
Antarctica.
*****
*Inputs
from Ministry of Home Affairs
PRA
SS 170/SF-170/13.10.2011