In news
An Army officer including four personnel killed near LoC in a bid to stop infiltrators
What is the Anti Infiltration Obstacle System(AIOS?
- It is the present fencing system in Kashmir valley and Jammu region near Line of Control
- AIOS double row fence consisting of concertina wire and was constructed between 2003 and 2005
- AIOS is located about 700m from the LoC
- The army constructed it to prevent terrorism and the infiltration of cross border illegal activities
- AIOS consists of a border fence, electric live wires, sensors, sirens, foot patrols, floodlights, other surveillance devices including handheld thermal imagers
- With its high rate of degradation every year due to snow, the Army came up with a proposal to install a smart fence with various sensors integrated into it and a pilot project was subsequently taken up.
Smart fencing
- Recently Indian Army tested a hybrid model of smart fence along LoC, but there is a rethink on converting the entire fence over a 700 km stretch into a smart one due to the high cost.
- As per the official statement, the new hybrid model of the smart fence being tested will cost around ₹10 lakh per km and 60 km is being attempted this year
- The earlier proposal for a hi-tech fence was to cost around ₹10 crore for 2.4 km. A ₹10 crore type trial was done in the Army’s 19 Division last year
- It was mentioned by the army that the fence will be integrated with LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensors, infrared sensors and cameras among others.