Sunday, May 20, 2018

The Land Borders Of India

India is the world’s seventh largest country by area and the second most populated one. India covers an area of 3,287,263 square km in South Asia. The country forms the bulk of the Indian subcontinent. The Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal, and the Arabian Sea washes the shores of the country to the south, southwest, and southeast, respectively. India shares her land borders with seven countries. The longest international land border of India is with Bangladesh while the shortest is with Afghanistan.







India-Bangladesh Border



The International Border (IB) between India and Bangladesh runs for a length of 4,097 km. The IB is the world’s fifth longest land border. The border is shared by five Indian states. Assam, Tripura, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Bengal share 262 km, 856 km, 10 km, 443 km, and 2,217 km of land border with Bangladesh, respectively. Six divisions of Bangladesh lie on the IB. Pillars and fences guard the border between these two countries. Border disputes related to the illegal entry of migrants from Bangladesh into India are common. There are also complaints of smuggling of goods and livestock across the border to Bangladesh. The Border Security Force of India guards the Indian side of the border.

India-China Border

The India-China border runs for a length of 3488 km. The border is known as the Line of Actual Control and is guarded by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police and Special Frontier Force. The border is disputed at certain parts and is not completely demarcated. High altitude terrain and thick growth of vegetation make it difficult for proper defense and demarcation of the border. The India-China border is shared by five Indian states: Jammu and Kashmir (1597 km), Himachal Pradesh (200 km), Uttarakhand (345 km), Sikkim (220 km), and Arunachal Pradesh (1126 km).

India-Pakistan Border

The most disturbed international border of India is with its neighbor Pakistan. India shares a 3323 km long border with Pakistan. The border extends from the LoC or the Line of Control to Wagah. The LoC separates Indian Kashmir from that of Pakistan. The Wagah divides the Indian state of Punjab and the Pakistani province of the same name. India-Pakistan also shares the Zero Point border which separates Rajasthan and Gujarat states of India from the Sindh province of Pakistan. The international border between these two countries is regarded as one of the most dangerous borders in the world. The border region has witnessed several wars and conflicts between the two countries.

India-Nepal Border

India’s border with Nepal runs for a distance of 1,751 km. The border extends for along the Himalayan foothills. India-Nepal border is referred to as a porous border where the friendly relations between the two countries allows an exchange of people without the need to obtain any visa. The Indian states of Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim, UP, and Uttarakhand have borders with Nepal. 

India–Myanmar Border

The border between India and Myanmar has a length of 1,643 km. The border is guarded by the Assam Rifles and Indian Army. A need has been felt to guard the border between the two countries against illegal drug trafficking. Four states of northeast India have borders with Myanmar. These include Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh. 

India-Bhutan Border

Bhutan and India share a 699 km long border that is guarded by the Sashastra Seema Bal. The Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, and Assam share 32 km, 183 km, 217 km, and 267 km of the border, respectively. Bhutan’s border with India is the only way to access Bhutan by land from anywhere else in the world. The Bhutan-China border is completely closed. Only one entry point in the Bhutan-India border allows foreigners access to Bhutan by land. This point is located between Bhutan’s Phuntsholing and India’s Jaigaon town in the West Bengal state. Citizens of India do not need a visa to visit Bhutan and vice versa.

India-Afghanistan Border

India shares a short 106 km long border with Afghanistan in Jammu and Kashmir. The border is heavily guarded by the Border Security Force.

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