Assam-Bengal border on high alert over jihadi infiltration, fake currency nexus

Security agencies have intensified vigil along the Assam–West Bengal border in Dhubri district following intelligence inputs about possible infiltration attempts by jihadi and fundamentalist groups from Bangladesh. 

Officials believe the volatile political situation in Nepal has pushed several operatives, who had earlier taken refuge there, to explore re-entry into India through the sensitive border stretches of Dhubri and Cooch Behar.

According to highly-placed sources, these outfits are part of a nexus engaged in drug trafficking and counterfeit currency circulation, with the aim of destabilising India’s northeastern states. The groups are said to have established a well-entrenched network through the Dhulabari–Nepal route, via Panitanki in Siliguri, West Bengal.

Intelligence reports suggest that counterfeit notes of Rs 500, Rs 200, and Rs 100 denominations are being smuggled into India from Bangladesh, with Dhubri acting as a key transit corridor. The fake currency is routed through the riverine areas of South Salmara-Mankachar, particularly Fakirganj, before spreading to Nidanpur and Tikrikilla in Meghalaya.

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Investigators say the racket thrives on a system of exchanging counterfeit notes at a discounted value for genuine currency, enabling large-scale circulation across the Northeast. Meghalaya and parts of West Bengal have already reported instances of such fake notes surfacing.

A recent seizure underlined the scale of the menace. On September 4, Golakganj police in Dhubri recovered fake notes of Rs 200 and Rs 500 during a raid at Halakura market. One accused, Abu Taher Ali, was arrested in connection with the haul.

Authorities have since stepped up deployment along border outposts and increased surveillance over ferry points and vulnerable stretches of the Brahmaputra, amid fears that the ongoing unrest in Nepal may trigger renewed infiltration attempts by these groups.