India and Bangladesh are separated by a 4098-km border passing through flat and hilly terrain, rivers and jungles. In some parts, the border passes through heavily populated areas with cultivation extending to the very edge of the border. Border pillars remain the only identification of the international boundary. What makes the areas abutting the border both interesting and complex is that the communities who straddle the political boundary are of the same ethnic stock, with common language, traditions and culture. Since there are countless streams and rivulets, it is not easy to establish and maintain border pillars on these river islands or chars. Varying seasons make it even more difficult to identify where Bangladesh begins. Many of these islands, clearly visible during the dry seasons, disappear when the monsoons arrive with thunderclaps. This makes effective patrolling difficult in these areas. It however encourages smugglers of all kinds—trading in contraband and cattle.

The matter of cattle smuggling would have remained a law and order problem but for the incidents of firing by the Indian security forces in which Bangladeshis have died. Bangladesh has accused the Indian Border Security Force (BSF), the paramilitary unit tasked with manning the International Boundary, of killing its citizens. The Indian authorities have strongly refuted these allegations, justifying the firing as preventive action to stop smugglers and other criminals from trespassing into India. The Indian authorities assert that the attacks on the border personnel by the smugglers have increased in recent years, forcing the soldiers to resort to firing. In 2010, they state, 32 intruders were killed while 64 BSF personnel were injured in the incidents. When the BSF, on the request of the Bangladesh government in 2012, resorted to non-lethal weapons like rubber bullets and pump action guns, the number of Bangladeshis killed on the border fell to 11 while the number of BSF personnel injured in the attacks rose to 150. India contends that the security forces resort to the use of lethal weapons in self-defence.

These accusations and counter-accusations have further deepened suspicion and bitterness between the two
neighbours. Although there are no official statistics either from Bangladesh or India about the number of people killed or their nationalities, NGOs in Bangladesh claim that over 1000 Bangladeshis have been killed on the border between 2001 and 2010. This figure could be exaggerated but it has led to a great deal of resentment in Bangladesh. There is no denying that deaths do take place on the border and one of the main reasons is the rampant smuggling of cattle.

This paper examines the magnitude of cattle-smuggling across the Indo-Bangla border, the negative consequences for Indian security and the steps needed to regulate cattle trade from India to Bangladesh, reportedly worth $500 million annually.