Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday chaired a high‑level meeting with senior officials of West Bengal and central forces to review security along India’s eastern borders.

The discussions were centred on strengthening arrangements at the Siliguri Corridor, also known as the ‘Chicken’s Neck’, a narrow stretch of land critical to national security.

The meeting focused on enhancing border surveillance and improving coordination between central security forces, intelligence agencies, and the state police and administration. Officials worked on drawing up a framework for establishing a ‘Triangular Security Grid’ to reinforce defences in the sensitive region.

Senior officers of the Border Security Force and the Sashastra Seema Bal, both deployed along the eastern borders, participated in the deliberations. The meeting was held at Sukna on the outskirts of Siliguri, marking the third and final day of the home minister’s visit to West Bengal.

The significance of the meeting lay in Siliguri’s proximity to the international borders with Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh. The narrow corridor serves as the principal land link between the Northeast and the rest of India, making its security vital for national integration and defence preparedness.

Shah emphasised the importance of the corridor, describing it as one of the most sensitive areas connecting eight states. He explained that the Centre had prepared a triangular grid comprising three new military garrisons at Dhubri in Assam, Kishanganj in Bihar, and Chopra in West Bengal. This grid is designed to strengthen the security architecture around the Chicken’s Neck land patch.

The triangular grid plan was first outlined by Shah during an event of the Sashastra Seema Bal in Siliguri on Friday. He highlighted that the establishment of these garrisons would provide a layered defence system, ensuring rapid deployment and coordinated response to any threats in the region.

The initiative reflects the Centre’s broader strategy of reinforcing border security while simultaneously addressing vulnerabilities in critical geographic chokepoints.

The Siliguri Corridor has long been viewed as a potential security risk due to its narrow width and strategic importance, and the triangular grid is intended to mitigate these concerns.

Shah’s engagements in Siliguri underline the government’s commitment to strengthening national security infrastructure in sensitive border regions.

His three‑day program combined reviews of operational readiness, announcements of new defence measures, and direct interaction with personnel, signalling a comprehensive approach to safeguarding the eastern frontier.

Agencies