Torrential monsoon rains and subsequent flooding have inflicted serious damage on India’s border fence along the Pakistan frontier, officials and local residents on both sides report.
Initial assessments suggest that approximately 110 kilometres of the fence have been affected, with nearly 90 Border Security Force (BSF) posts submerged. Once visible as a continuous line of light from the air at night, the lighting along the fence has gone dark in numerous stretches due to damage or submersion.
According to local resident Gurwinder Singh, citing Indian authorities, the flooding resulted from the sudden release of water from the Thien Dam, along with surges from the Tawi River. “Of the affected sections, 80 kilometres lie in the Punjab sector and another 30 in parts of Jammu,” he said.
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Senior journalist Surinder Khochar reported that 111 villages in Ferozepur and 77 in Fazilka district have been submerged, affecting over 60,000 people. Border-adjacent villages such as Mehdi Pur and Mianwali in Tarn Taran’s Khem Karan area, as well as the last settlements in Fazilka, are among the worst hit. Rising levels of the Ravi, Sutlej, and Chenab rivers have left portions of the fence under 2 to 3 feet of water.
A broken section of the India-Pakistan border fence lies submerged under floodwaters. Photo by Author
Local farmer Amrinder Singh of Fazilka described the devastation: “Many of our villages near the border are completely under water. Our crops have been destroyed.”
Meanwhile in Pakistan, villagers from Sialkot confirmed damage to the fence on their side. Farmer Muhammad Aslam said the structure near his fields was broken in several places. “We saw Indian farmers trying to secure the fence against floodwaters,” he added. Another villager, Haji Ibrahim, accused the Indian government of intentionally releasing water to inflict cross-border devastation and symbolically “wash away the line of division.”
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In Kasur district, flooding of the Sutlej River has submerged the Ganda Singh and Hussainiwala border points, forcing the indefinite suspension of the iconic flag-lowering ceremony.
Security sources in Pakistan confirmed that some Ranger posts in Punjab have also been affected, although no formal statement has been issued so far.
Indian officials have indicated that repair work will commence once water levels return to normal. Meanwhile, the BSF has ramped up surveillance and border monitoring by deploying drones, boat patrols, and electronic surveillance systems.
