M A I N   N E W S

Army to mine more border areas
Kulwinder Sandhu
Tribune News Service

Ferozepore, June 2
The Army has acquired more areas for laying mines in the border areas. This is in addition to the areas that have earlier been acquired as part of the military build-up.

Both India and Pakistan have laid large numbers of anti-personnel and anti-vehicle mines along the common border. This has been one of the largest mine laying operation anywhere in the world since 1997 when 122 nations signed the mine ban treaty (convention on the prohibition of the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines and on their destruction). Neither India nor Pakistan is party to that treaty, though both have stated their support for a comprehensive global ban on anti-personnel mines at some point in the future.

India has openly acknowledged that it is laying mines along its border with Pakistan. The Army apparently began to mine its territory on December 25, 2001, and had mined its entire area of 1,800-mile (2,897-km) border with Pakistan, at times creating minefields three miles wide (4.8 km). Mines have been laid in agricultural areas right after crops were planted and civilians were forced to evacuate the areas.

According to Mr D.K. Tiwari, Deputy Commissioner, Ferozepore, 27,127 hectares (105 square miles), including 350 villages, along the 210 km long international border in the district has been earlier acquired by the Army to lay mines or construct fortifications. But now, after the harvesting has been completed for the wheat crop the Army has acquired new areas to lay fresh mines. However, he declined to give details of the land acquired in the past three weeks by the Army. The fresh report is yet to be compiled. Army officials say that three phases of mine laying have been completed.

Media reports indicate that Pakistan has also mined its side of the border though both India and Pakistan are party to the 1996 Amended Protocol II of the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons. This protocol restricts the way the countries can use anti-personnel mines and the types of mines they can be used. An obligation that both parties must observe is a requirement that they provide effective exclusion of civilians from areas containing anti-personnel mines.

There have been numerous reports in the media of Indian civilian casualties from the recently laid mines. More than 10 persons have been killed and at least 50 have been injured since December last in Punjab and Rajasthan due to mine blasts.

India is not a party to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty. India is one of the 14 countries in the world that still produce anti-personnel mines. India has produced two types of anti-personnel mines, M16A1 and the low metal content M14, both copies of US designs. It has been recently acknowledged that India has designed a new type of mine which is under trial evaluation and prototype production.

The most severe humanitarian problem causing civilian casualties in the region has been in conflict areas where non-state actors use improvised explosive devices (IED). In Jammu and Kashmir alone, according to statistics complied by the Army, 1,041 civilians were killed and a further 8,736 injured due to explosions caused by mines and IEDs between 1990 and January 2001. According to Indian Government sources, 129 civilians were killed and 715 were injured as a result of mine and IED incidents in Jammu and Kashmir in 2000. From this period onwards no report had yet been compiled by the Ministry of Defence.

On the other hand, Pakistan has also not joined the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty. The state-owned Pakistan Ordnance Factories have produced six types of anti-personnel mines - two low metal content blast mines (P2 Mk2 and P4 Mk2), two bounding fragmentation mines (P3 Mk2 and P7 Mk2), and two directional fragmentation/Claymore-type mines (P5 Mk1 and P5 Mk2). Pakistan is also reported to be developing a remotely delivered anti-personnel mine system. Pakistan also produces several types of anti-vehicle mines.

Pakistan’s arsenal of anti-personnel mines is estimated at six million mines, fifth largest in the world. Pakistan states that it has not exported anti-personnel mines since 1991 and that in February 1999 it “totally banned” the export of anti-personnel mines through the Statutory Regulatory Order-123(1)1999 and “export control procedures.” However, questions have been raised about Pakistan-manufactured anti-personnel mines being supplied to armed groups fighting in India-administered Kashmir.

Pakistan used landmines during its three wars with India in 1947, 1965, and 1971. Pakistan has also laid anti-personnel mines in front of its defended localities in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. India accused Pakistani troops of using mines during fighting in the Kargil region of Kashmir in mid-1999.

However, both India and Pakistan are party to the 1996 Amended Protocol II of the Convention on Conventional Weapons. This treaty regulates, as opposed to prohibiting, the use of anti-personnel mines and establishes certain technical requirements for them. There have been a number of incidents in the conflict between India and Pakistan that raise serious questions about the manner in which the two countries are implementing Amended Protocol II.