The bomb disposal robot can be remotely operated from up to 1km away. It has two-way audio and video capturing capabilities. It can climb stairs too. Photo: Collected
Shariful Islam and Mohammad Jamil KhanTwo bomb-disposal robots would soon be used in Bangladesh for busting explosive-stashed militants' dens where the risk of death lurks in every corner.
The remotely controlled German-made robots are capable of breaking into militants' dens, defuse explosives on the spot or move them to a safer place, reducing the exposure of law enforcers and risk of casualties.
The Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, which specialises in fighting militancy, is also getting a Tk-14-crore Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) van from the US. The Armoured Personnel Carrier-like vehicle is supposed to arrive within a month.
During operations, law enforcers inside the van would be able to monitor the situation outside via CCTV cameras.
Officials said the van, if need be, would help conduct operations like that of the Gulshan café attack in 2016 as the vehicle would be able to break through walls and enter a place without incurring damage to itself. The van is bullet-, mine-, and IED-proof.
The robots, costing around Tk 10 crore including 200 percent tax and expenditure for staff training, have already been delivered, said CTTC officials.
The robots, which use tracks instead of wheels, can travel on mud, dirt, grass, gravel, climb up and down stairs and even flip over.
Robots have been used for disposing bombs for more than 40 years and police in India and Pakistan also use them, according to media reports. This is the first time the CTTC, created in 2016, is getting such an equipment.
“The robots are capable of detecting explosives, defusing them, and if necessary, will carry any bomb of a certain weight to a safer place and then defuse it to avoid explosion and reduce the risk of causalities,” said Chief of CTTC unit Monirul Islam.
Proloy Kumar Joarder, deputy commissioner (special action group) of the CTTC, told The Daily Star, “Our officials used to conduct operations manually. From now on, we will conduct operations with SWAT van.”
“The robots, specialised vehicles and gadgets will make our operations easier and secure,” said Rahmatullah Chowdhury, additional deputy commissioner of bomb disposal unit of CTTC recently.
Source: The daily star news paper.
