West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari is set to chair a high-level administrative review meeting on Friday, 12 June, focusing on border security and flood management across Malda, Murshidabad, North Dinajpur, and South Dinajpur — all four districts sharing an international boundary with Bangladesh. The meeting, convened at the state secretariat Nabanna, comes as the new government accelerates land handover to the Border Security Force (BSF) for barbed-wire fencing along unfenced stretches.

Key Agenda: BSF Land Handover and Fencing Progress

The primary item on the agenda is a progress review of land transfer to the BSF for erecting barbed fencing along currently unfenced border segments. According to sources from the state secretariat, the official land handover process commenced on 20 May, covering 27 kilometres of border land in the first tranche.

Of India's total 4,096.7-kilometre international border with Bangladesh, just over 2,000 kilometres fall within West Bengal. Of that West Bengal stretch, approximately 1,600 kilometres are already fenced, leaving around 600 kilometres unfenced — the segment the current administration is prioritising.

Police-BSF Coordination Against Illegal Infiltration

The meeting will also take up the issue of operational coordination between the West Bengal Police and the BSF to curb illegal infiltration from Bangladesh. This comes after the state government recently decided to bypass judicial production of arrested infiltrators, instead routing them through holding centres before handing them over to BSF border outposts for push-back into Bangladesh.

CM Adhikari has repeatedly alleged that the previous Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, led by Mamata Banerjee, deliberately stalled land handover to the BSF in order to facilitate illegal infiltration and consolidate a captive vote bank. The TMC has not formally responded to these specific allegations.

Riverbank Erosion and Pre-Monsoon Flood Control

The second major agenda item is the chronic problem of riverbank erosion in Malda and Murshidabad, which reportedly causes significant property loss every year. With the monsoon approaching, flood control preparedness in both districts will also be reviewed at the meeting.

This is the first such comprehensive border-and-disaster-management review since Adhikari assumed charge last month, signalling an early administrative focus on the state's vulnerable eastern frontier.

What Comes Next

Decisions taken at Friday's review are expected to shape the pace of fencing completion along the remaining 600-kilometre unfenced stretch. Faster land handover to the BSF and tighter police-BSF coordination could accelerate the timeline, though the scale of the task — and the monsoon window — will test execution capacity in the months ahead.