Kutch (Gujarat), October 25, 2026: The Border Security Force (BSF) apprehended four Pakistani fishermen and seized their fibre fishing boat in the sensitive Sir Creek area of the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat’s Kutch district along the India-Pakistan border. The operation, conducted on the basis of specific intelligence inputs, followed the fishermen’s alleged entry into Indian waters for crab-catching activities.
The apprehended individuals have been identified as Kadir Thaimor, Muhammad Mussa, Azgar Thaimor and Ahsan Jat, all residents of Chach Jaan Khan village in Pakistan’s Sindh province, according to information provided by the BSF. A fibre fishing boat was seized during the interception. Further details regarding additional recoveries, the investigation and subsequent legal proceedings were not immediately available.
BSF personnel intercepted the group while maintaining surveillance in the marshy tidal channels of the region. Officials noted that the force continues to maintain a close vigil along the western border to prevent unauthorised crossings and other illegal activities. Such incidents of Pakistani fishermen entering or straying into Indian waters while fishing have been reported periodically from the Sir Creek area in the past, given the challenging terrain of shallow waters, extensive marshlands and tidal fluctuations that complicate navigation and border surveillance.
Sir Creek is a roughly 96-kilometre-long narrow, marshy tidal estuary in the Rann of Kutch that separates Gujarat in India from Sindh province in Pakistan before opening into the Arabian Sea. The area remains strategically sensitive because of the longstanding unresolved boundary dispute between India and Pakistan over the creek.
This dispute, rooted in differing interpretations of a 1914 Bombay Government Resolution and the applicability of the thalweg principle for navigable channels, affects the demarcation of the maritime boundary and the respective Exclusive Economic Zones in the Arabian Sea. The 1968 tribunal award settled most of the larger Rann of Kutch claims but left the Sir Creek issue open. The difficult geography continues to make surveillance demanding for security forces.
The latest apprehension underscores the BSF’s ongoing efforts to secure the sensitive coastal frontier in Kutch amid the persistent maritime boundary complexities in the region.
