This aligns with an earlier tunnel detected in 2012

The Border Security Force has handed over a protest note to Pakistan Rangers following detection of a portion of a caved-in tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir’s Samba district near the International Border.

The caved-in portion was found in the Chillyari border belt 23 metres, inside Indian territory, from pillar number 170 on zero-line on the International Border a few days ago, BSF offcials said on Saturday.

The 3X3 tunnel was detected when bushes were being cleared.

It is the latest alignment point of a 400-metre tunnel into India from Pakistan, found on July 28, 2012. It was found after an area caved in at three places following rain, the officials said.

The tunnel was dug from the Pakistan side for infiltration and smuggling, they said.

D-G to take the call

Asked whether the BSF would take up the issue with Pakistan, an officer said its Director-General “will take a call on what is to be done further.”

“When we were trying to dig over the tunnel alignment towards Pakistan, troops from across the border fired on excavators and men and stopped us,” he said.

The credit for discovering the tunnel in 2012 goes to 12th class student Sukhdev, who informed the BSF after his farm land caved in.

Serious concernThe then Director-General, BSF, U.K. Bansal, termed it a serious security concern. After inspecting that tunnel, he told reporters: “This is definitely something which goes against the confidence building measures being initiated between the two countries.”