A border outpost, border out post, border observation post or BOPBSF foils bid to smuggle weapons and explosives
; STAFF WRITER; January 8, 2010; Press Trust of India (PTI) is an outpost maintained by a

sovereign state A sovereign state is a State (polity), state that has the highest authority over a territory. It is commonly understood that Sovereignty#Sovereignty and independence, a sovereign state is independent. When referring to a specific polity, the ter ...

on its

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

, usually one of a series placed at regular intervals, to watch over and safeguard its border with a neighboring state with which it may or may not have friendly relations. Such posts are staffed by border guards and are at all times connected by

radio communication Radio is the technology of telecommunication, communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transm ...

with ongoing border patrols in their

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

and the force headquarters in the interior of the country for their day-to-day functioning, passing on

intelligence Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. It can be described as t ...

and for requesting supplies and any needed reinforcements in emergencies. Depending on the length and breadth of a country's borders and geography, they could be located in a wide variety of terrain, including the inhospitable areas that often mark political boundaries.

Layout

Border outposts, where available, are built on strategic locations which are usually elevated at the highest points in the local terrain and where possible on hilltops along the border. Depending upon

international relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

with the neighboring country and local strategic needs, BOPs are sometimes built with an assortment of a few administration and residential buildings or

tent A tent is a shelter consisting of sheets of fabric or other material draped over or attached to a frame of poles or a supporting rope. While smaller tents may be free-standing or attached to the ground, large tents are usually anchored using g ...

s, an armory,

trench A trench is a type of digging, excavation or depression in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a swale (landform), swale or a bar ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or trapping ...

, bunkers, wire obstacles, fortified machine gun posts and watchtowers. A flagpole flying the country's

national flag A national flag is a flag that represents and national symbol, symbolizes a given nation. It is Fly (flag), flown by the government of that nation, but can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanin ...

may be located on the premise along with a Wireless Communication Antenna and a designated clearing as a make-do

helipad A helipad is the landing area of a heliport, in use by helicopters, powered lift, and vertical lift aircraft to land on surface. While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fa ...

Peacetime function

Border outposts are staffed in peacetime by the border guard to check smuggling, infiltration by spies of untrusted neighboring countries, insurgents bent on smuggling weapons and explosives for

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

attacks and subversive activities, illegal immigration and

human trafficking Human trafficking is the act of recruiting, transporting, transferring, harboring, or receiving individuals through force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of exploitation. This exploitation may include forced labor, sexual slavery, or oth ...

etc.. They usually have watchtowers where soldiers are posted day and night on sentry duty looking for intruders and illegal cross-border activity of any kind. Patrols go out regularly to patrol the international border to check illegal crossings and track any footprints of those who may have crossed over illegally or attempted to. In case intrusion by foreign elements is confirmed, it is the responsibility of the Border guard based on the BOP to trace the intruders by checking the nearby settlements, villages and towns and inform the law enforcement agencies, Customs and Police authorities.Indian

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

film ''

Border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

'' (1997) made with the official assistance of the Border Security Force (BSF), Indian Army and Indian Airforce.Indian Bollywood film ''

Refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

'' (2000) made with the official assistance of the Border Security Force (BSF)

Wartime function

During wartime however the border guard, the special forces tasked with patrolling the border in peacetime, withdraw from the Border outposts and provide assistance in a limited capacity to the country's regular

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

which then comes and mans all the border outposts at the international border facing the enemy neighboring country. Wartime assistance of the border guard to the army is essential as they are familiar with the local terrain having patrolled it on a daily basis during peacetime. During wars these BOPs are reworked into well fortified dug-in positions from where regular army units can operate to defend the territorial integrity of the country.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Border Outpost Borders Border guards Fortifications by type Military strategy Military science International relations theory Military intelligence collection

Layout

Peacetime function

Wartime function

See also

References