India's Border Security Force (BSF) has taken back 21 people, including women and children, who had remained stranded near the zero line along the Panchagarh and Thakurgaon borders after multiple attempts to push them into Bangladesh were foiled by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).

Lt Col Md Sirajul Islam, commanding officer of BGB-56 Battalion in Nilphamari, told The Daily Star that BSF personnel switched off border security lights and removed 10 people from the zero line along the Barabari-Pradhanpara border in Panchagarh Sadar upazila around 2:40am today.

The group, comprising five men, two women and three children, had been stranded there since Friday morning, when BSF allegedly attempted to push them into Bangladesh through the border.

BGB personnel prevented their entry, citing the absence of identity verification and the lack of any formal repatriation process.

The 10 people had since remained on a narrow embankment in a cropland at the zero line, enduring scorching heat and intermittent thunderstorms.

Two rounds of meetings between battalion and company commanders-level of the border forces of the two countries failed to resolve the situation.

In a similar development, BSF personnel removed 11 people, including women and children, from near the zero line along the Mashalgaon border in Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon around 3:30am today, according to Lt Col Abdullah Al Moin Hasan, commanding officer of Dinajpur BGB-42 Battalion.

The group had been left stranded near the border since early Saturday after BSF allegedly attempted to push them into Bangladesh through the Mashalgaon border.

The group consisted of three men, four women and four children.

BGB personnel blocked their entry as their identities could not be confirmed and no formal repatriation procedure had been followed, officials said.