New Delhi, Oct 6: Security forces like NSG, CRPF and ITBP have turned their ‘night eye' on to undertake special operations in Naxal-hit areas and along the country's borders as the government has recently sanctioned more than 19,000 night-vision devices for them.
The high-end devices, procured from public sector Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), include weapon mounted night-vision telescopes, night sights for rocket launchers, monoculars and binoculars and helmet mounted night vision devices which can be worn by troops.
The Night-Vision Devices (NVDs) are considered the most essential aid for security forces to operate better at night, with a clear vision of the enemy and other static targets.
“The various variants of NVDs will give security forces deployed for anti-Naxal operations the much needed visibility in the dark. For special forces like NSG, they help the commandos accomplish a task with better precision,” a senior Home Ministry officer said.
Describing the inventory of night-vision devices, he said 2,671 passive NVDs (monocular), 8,052 passive NVDs (binocular), 8,109 passive weapon sights and 203 night-vision goggles have been sanctioned by the ministry for forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the elite ‘black cat' commando National Security Guard (NSG).
While the CRPF is thick in action in Naxal-hit states, the BSF, SSB and ITBP guard Indian frontiers with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and China.
The security forces have also procured 1,491 hand held thermal imagers which are used to detect the movement of intruders along the border fence.
Various field formations of the security forces had sought these devices as they found themselves ill-equipped to operate in the dark in the absence of such gadgets.
Forces like CRPF and BSF can mount the night-vision telescopes on their INSAS rifles and light machine guns when they render guard duties in the night.
With the help of these devices, they can fend off a possible attack on their camps or posts at night as they can see the movement of enemies and take correct aim at the attacker, the officer said. PTI
