KATHMANDU: Security has been tightened along the Nepal-India border following the recent violence in Dewanganj, Sunsari, with authorities making identity documents mandatory for Indian nationals entering Nepal.
The Koshi Provincial Government has stepped up security at southern border checkpoints adjoining India and instructed security agencies to remain on high alert.
The decision was made at an all-party security meeting held at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law in Biratnagar on Wednesday, where officials reviewed the security situation in the border region.
Koshi Province Police Chief DIG Shekhar Khanal said additional police personnel had been deployed to prevent possible cross-border infiltration, arms smuggling and drug trafficking following the violence on Sunday night.
He said police teams from Madhesh Province had also been deployed to southern Sunsari, where tensions persist, while security personnel from other districts in Koshi Province had been mobilised to reinforce the security presence.
At the meeting, Morang Chief District Officer Yubaraj Kattel said authorities had received information that some groups could attempt to enter Nepal under the guise of religious organisations. He said special surveillance had been introduced at border checkpoints.
Kattel said only Indian nationals carrying valid government-issued or other official identity documents would be allowed to enter Nepal. He added that individuals involved in suspicious activities would be placed under strict surveillance and detained if necessary.
He said security agencies remained on high alert following the Dewanganj incident and that authorities had adopted a policy of denying entry to anyone attempting to cross the border without valid identification.
The violence began on Sunday night during clashes between two religious communities in Dewanganj. During efforts to bring the situation under control, police opened fire, killing 24-year-old Om Prakash Mehta. Ten other people sustained gunshot injuries, while more than a dozen police personnel were also injured.
The unrest later spread to southern parts of Sunsari and the district headquarters, Inaruwa. The Nepal Army has also been deployed after incidents of arson and vandalism by unruly groups.
Participants at the Biratnagar meeting appealed to the public to maintain communal harmony, avoid spreading rumours, refrain from taking the law into their own hands and help preserve religious tolerance.
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