India and Nepal to Deploy Drones for Mapping Border Encroachments in Dasgaja

Representatives from Nepal’s Survey Department and India’s Survey of India met in Lucknow and decided to employ drones to map illegal uses of the Dasgaja strip, a 10-yard buffer along the two countries’ frontier. The plan also covers broader cross-border occupation where citizens farm or reside on land that technically belongs to the opposite side of the 1,880 km open border. The decision was prompted by Prime Minister Balendra Shah’s May parliamentary comments that Nepal had encroached on Indian soil, which ignited protests and required clarification from Nepal’s foreign ministry.

Survey Department spokesperson Dayanand Joshi confirmed the drone survey will capture both Dasgaja intrusions and other cross-border land grabs. Border expert Buddhi Narayan Shrestha noted that past field work identified dozens of such incidents and that missing boundary pillars—about 42 % of the 8,553 shown on maps—make aerial mapping essential. Once the technical data are compiled, higher-level officials are expected to negotiate resolutions, potentially involving land restoration or compensation.