BGB nayek dies 19 days after losing legs in border landmine explosion
NAIKHONGCHHARI CORRESPONDENT, BANDARBAN
A Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) nayek, who lost both legs in a landmine explosion along the Myanmar border in Bandarban earlier this month, died yesterday after 19 days of treatment.
Akhtar Hossain, 45, of the 34 BGB Battalion, was critically injured on October 12 while on patrol near pillar No. 40 in the Baishfari border area under Ghumdhum union of Naikhongchhari upazila. He had both legs amputated following the explosion.
According to BGB officials, Akhtar suffered a heart attack around 12:30pm on Friday while undergoing treatment at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka. Despite 45 minutes of CPR under the supervision of Brig Gen Sadat Bin Siraj, his heart did not respond, and doctors declared him dead at 12:15pm.
Lt Col S M Khairul Alam, commanding officer of 34 BGB Battalion in Cox’s Bazar, confirmed the death.
Akhtar was a resident of Ward 9 of Daulatkhan municipality in Bhola and the son of retired BGB havildar Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan. He leaves behind his wife, two sons, and a daughter.
BGB sources said the explosion occurred when a patrol team reached an area between pillars 40 and 41, near the proposed temporary observation post (TOB) of Reju Amtali BOP’s Piyarabunia point. The mine is believed to have been planted by Myanmar’s rebel group, the Arakan Army.
Intelligence sources said tension has been running high along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border amid ongoing conflict inside Myanmar. The Arakan Army has turned several areas into minefields, putting BGB patrols in the Ghumdhum and Baishfari border zones at serious risk.
Earlier, several local residents and Rohingya intruders were killed or injured in similar landmine explosions in the same area.
Locals described the current border situation as “extremely dangerous” and urged the government to strengthen army surveillance alongside BGB patrols to prevent further infiltration and casualties.
