NEW DELHI : Task of guarding the treacherous and icy Sino-India border is taking a “very heavy toll” on the health of ITBP personnel as cases of frostbite, amputation, memory loss and snow blindness are being detected among them.
A report on the status of this elite border guarding force chronicles some very hard and daunting challenges faced by ITBP personnel who are at the forefront of this border which has seen numerous intrusions by Chinese troops in the past few years.
Jawans and officers of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force are deployed in some of the most inhospitable terrains along this 3,488-km frontier, with their border posts ranging between an altitude of 9,000-18,500 feet amidst thin oxygen levels and a continuous threat of blizzards.
“To ensure territorial integrity of the country, troops need to walk for days together to reach their border out-posts and carry out long distance patrolling on foot covering a distance of 60-120 km in a stretch of 12-30 days in extremely difficult climatic conditions.
“Extreme high altitude coupled with rarefied oxygen and treacherous terrain take a very heavy toll on health of ITBP soldiers and often result in frostbite, chilblains, amputated limbs, memory loss, permanent high blood pressure, heart attacks, joint problems, disc dislocation, snow blindness, among others,” stated the report, submitted to the Union Home Ministry to update the government of the work conditions of the about 80,000 personnel-strong force.
Giving an insight into an average day on the border posts of this frontier, the report, accessed by PTI, states that ITBP posts are “exposed to high velocity storms, avalanches and landslides, besides the health hazards of high altitudes and extreme cold (to the jawans) where temperature dips down to minus 50 degree Celsius (at many locations).”
Due to the extreme remote and difficult-to-reach border locations, the report said, ITBP personnel have to “remain deployed in posts during winter months to guard the border when the posts remain cut-off from rest of the world for almost six months due to heavy snow accumulation and inaccessible tracks, sacrificing their personal and social life,” it said.
The report goes on to add that in most of the sectors
along this border, for which India and China are on the discussion table for years to settle their respective jurisdictions, ITBP is “deployed much ahead of the Indian Army and to face first brunt of enemy in border.
“In war time, ITBP would be integrated into the overall operations plan of the nation and fight along with Army and other forces to defend the country,” it stated.
The troops of the force, also called ‘Himveers’ by virtue of their deployment in the Himalayas, live a difficult life as occupational hazards concerning their mental and physical health continue to bog them.
The report adds that these high-risk duties of this mountain-trained force leads to “isolation, insomnia, depression, various health hazards like pulmonary oedema, psychological and mental disturbances” in troops even as it brings in prolonged separation from family thereby inducing stress, limited social life and deprivation from basic requirement like fresh vegetables, daily newspapers, potable drinking water, mobile connection, regular electricity, running water and scarce health care support.
The report has sought that the men and women of ITBP should be given a special pay which may be called the ‘Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) special pay’ on the lines of what is given to defence forces deployed along borders.
The force has also sought that its troops deployed in hard areas of Leh, Ladakh and forward areas of North East should be granted at least five “emergency passage” or contingency leaves in an year as compared to only two at present.
The ITBP, raised in 1962 in the aftermath of the Chinese aggression, is specially known for its elite commando squad and the men of this unit guard some important high-risk VIPs in the country. (AGENCIES)