Villagers along the international border in Meghalaya’s South West Khasi Hills now have a reason to become a little cheerful after border troops provided them with a ferry to cross the river.

People of Gumaghat, which has around 12 villages, have been facing severe problems in crossing Jadukata river. The problem becomes severe during the rainy season, a BSF official said.

Recognising the difficulties, the BSF (Meghalaya Frontier) has provided a ferry service for the civilians of these villages to cross the Jadukata. The service was started on Tuesday.

Meghalaya BSF frontier inspector-general Kuldeep Saini inaugurated the ferry service for both passengers as well as vehicles to cross the river at Gumaghat.

Locals have expressed gratitude to the border troops for providing the service for the first time ever, the BSF official said.

“Following the trend, this year too, BSF will organise more civic action programmes for the needy and under-privileged population residing in far-flung areas along the border to boost mutual trust between them and the security personnel,” Saini said.

A series of civic action programmes are being conducted by the BSF to assist the residents of the border areas, upgrade existing infrastructure and create new avenues to ensure positive changes in the life of local villagers, the official added.

He said several public outreach programmes are being conducted to maintain better understanding between the BSF and local residents.