3 battalions to find no room in Pilkhana

BDR reform proposals handed to Faruk Khan
Against the backdrop of last February’s bloody mutiny, three out of the four BDR battalions now based in its headquarters at Pilkhana are likely to be moved outside the capital.
Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) sources said a set of proposals for BDR reforms was prepared by a sub-committee, formed earlier and led by the BDR’s director general (DG). The committee in a meeting at Pilkhana placed the set of proposals for BDR reforms, including its probable new name, before Commerce Minster Faruk Khan yesterday evening.
The moving of the three battalions was in the proposals, sources said.
Faruk Khan heads a committee, formed in the wake of BDR carnage, for coordinating measures of the Prime Minister’s Office and the home and defence ministries.
Maj Gen Md Mainul Islam, DG of BDR, told The Daily Star last night, “Considering all aspects, we gave complete proposals on the reforms of the force. Its organisational structure, functions and all related matters are in the proposals.”
“If the government approves the proposals in principle, we will go for the next step–implementation,” said Gen Mainul declining to give any details about the proposals.
Representatives of the home ministry, Armed Forces Division, Army, Police, and Ansar are members of the sub-committee. The National Defence College extended support to the secretarial work of the sub-committee.
“We proposed five new names for BDR. Of the five, the most voted names are ‘Bangladesh Border Guards’ and ‘Border Guards of Bangladesh’,” said a source.
The source said, “BDR headquarters would remain in Pilkhana but we have proposed to move three of the four battalions out of the headquarters.”
Bangladesh Rifles 24, 36, 13, and 44 Battalion are based in the BDR headquarters and soldiers of these battalions took part in the bloody mutiny on February 25-26 which left 74 persons killed including 57 of the army’s finest officers who were on deputation there.
A source in the BDR said three battalions were not proposed to be moved out of the capital because those battalions were involved in the mutiny.
The source said, “In fact, the four battalions at the headquarters are reserve forces. If needed we could deploy these battalions anywhere outside the capital. But now we think it is better to move their base out of Dhaka which would allow us to deploy them in the border more quickly when required.”
Sources say that the BDR now has 12 sectors and the sector headquarters command their forces. The committee proposed a new modus operandi dividing the map of the country into three regions and bringing the sectors under those regions.
“We have proposed moving the three battalions to three proposed regional headquarters as reserve forces,” said a BDR source.
Only one battalion would remain in Pilkhana headquarters as reserve force, the source said.
The committee proposed keeping the old slogan of BDR “Shimanter Otondro Prohori”, the sources said, adding that they also proposed changing the existing badge of the BDR.
“We proposed keeping a picture of a border pillar at the bottom of the two crossed rifles in the present badge,” source said.
Sources said the committee proposed three possible options for appointing officers and personnel of other ranks in BDR.
As per one of the three options, all officers of the force would be military officers and other personnel of BDR would be recruited directly, the source said.
“As a large number of BDR personnel would lose their jobs for their role in the mutiny, we proposed filling up the vacancies temporarily by bringing in personnel of same rank from the army, police, Rab and Ansar,” said another source.
“A few years later when the border force will have enough number of its own personnel, those from the army, police, Rab and Ansar would be sent back,” said a source.
The source said another option is to have cent percent officers from the army and fill 70 percent of other positions with BDR and the remaining position with army, police, and Ansar personnel.
“This 30 percent men would join the force on deputation just prior to their retirement,” said a source.
Another option is to have 90 percent officers from the army and 10 percent from the police and Ansar. Army, police and Ansar men on deputation would fill half the other posts and the other half would be appointed directly from the BDR.
The sources said they proposed a BDR uniform similar to the army’s but of a different colour than that of the BDR.

Courtesy of The Daily Star