The government will lose up to Rs 700 crore as expenses incurred on landmines laid along the India-Pakistan border stretching from Jammu & Kashmir to Rajasthan. Chief of Army Staff General S Padmanabhan has decided to destroy the landmines.
The issue of the mines, laid over the last forty years, came up after the government's decision to redeploy and withdraw forces along the border.
Although no one has the exact figure, the mines along the border number 2 million, most of them being anti-personnel and anti-tank ones. Some are also the vintage bar mines, many of which had gone off during the deployment, causing 60 people to be killed and 120 wounded.
Laying fresh mines resulted in the death of 100 soldiers in two incidents in the past year. This caused the Army brass to decide that no more deaths would be allowed to take place because of the mines.
Several countries have been approached to demine the fields along the border. The US has provided equipment to blow up the mines. Equipment such as mine ploughs, flails, mine shoes and bullet-proof jackets have been provided by the US.
Although the forces have returned, guards have been posted to prevent villagers and cattle from straying into mined fields. The mined land had become the object of a political controversy, with villagers claiming that the deployment was not resolving the Kashmir problem.
Arable land was also rendered unfit for cultivation as a result of the mines, they complained. They either wanted action against Pakistan or their land returned, demands that the government was unable to meet.
