ABSTRACT
Fences or barriers are described as ‘fortified boundaries’ – formidable, yet not as robust as militarised boundaries – constructed for enhanced border controls. Among all its international borders, India constructed its first fence along the India-Bangladesh border. The idea of fencing the border with Bangladesh to stem the tide of illegal migrants was first put forward by the Assam government in January 1965. The construction of fences along the India-Pakistan border was propelled by Sikh militancy in Punjab. Punjab grappled with raging militancy and rampant trafficking of narcotics across its international border in the 1980s. The Indian government decided to build a 10 km long fence along the international border at Moreh in Manipur as this stretch along the border is most porous to the movement of insurgents and traffickers. Significantly, the decision to construct a fence has met with opposition, domestically as well as externally.
