MHA weighs Border Management Agency like in South Africa

The Union home ministry is examining a proposal to set up a Border Management Agency (BMA) similar to what was started by South Africa in 2023 in the form of a separate border management agency, ET has learnt. The proposal was first mooted by BJP Rajya Sabha MP from Maharashtra, Ajeet Madhavrao Gopchade, in a letter to PM Narendra Modi in April after the Pahalgam attack.

Speaking to ET over phone, Gopchade said, “There is a detailed explanation for this proposal in a five-page note. Since the paramilitary is under the home ministry, they have replied with a letter confirming the same.” In a letter dated June 4, 2025, MoS (home) Nityanand Rai noted that the home ministry has received the proposal and it is being examined. MP Gopchande shared a copy of the letter with ET.

In his detailed note, the MP highlighted the “absence of unified command and tech-driven surveillance in the border areas”. While quoting South Africa’s 2023 legislation, it stated the need for “an integrated border law enforcement within the border law enforcement area, and cooperation and coordination of border management matters in general”.