BSF seizes abandoned Pak boat; finds a flag and Multan-made candy

The Border Security Force (BSF) seized an abandoned Pakistani boat from Tota Guru post (Dera Baba Nanak post) on river Ravi at around 5am on Tuesday.

A day after the Border Security Force (BSF) opened fire after noticing suspicious movement across the fence near the Chakri border outpost in the Gurdaspur sector, it seized an empty boat belonging to the Pakistan Rangers after it drifted from across the border into the Tota post area in the Amritsar sector.

The boat was first spotted by a BSF jawan at 5am. (Gurpreet Singh/HT Photo)

The boat, painted in green and carrying a Pakistani flag, was spotted in the Ravi river on the Indian side.

Later at the flag meeting with the BSF, the Pakistan Rangers admitted that the boat belonged to them and it accidentally strayed from the Balam post into Indian waters due to sudden rise in the level of Ravi.

The BSF will hand over the boat to their counterparts on Wednesday.

“Alert was sounded after BSF troops deployed in forward area observed a boat coming from the Pakistan side in the Ravi around 5am. The troops stationed at the ferry point of border out post Rear Kakkar seized the boat,” BSF deputy inspector general (Amritsar sector) JS Oberoi said.

The boat was searched and nothing suspicious was found except a Pakistani flag, he said.

The DIG said such occurrences were not rare as in the past, even animals from across the border have flowed into the Indian territory due to rise in water level of the Ravi.

The boat seizure comes amid heightened tension between India and Pakistan following surgical strikes across the Line of Control.