Farmers living along the India–Pakistan border in Punjab have welcomed the Centre’s decision to conduct a survey aimed at shifting border fencing closer to the international boundary. If implemented, the move will bring major relief to farmers long forced to cultivate their crops across the fence under tight BSF restrictions including limited farming hours and repeated security checks. Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann recently said letters have been issued to deputy commissioners (DCs) of border districts — Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Fazilka, and Ferozepur — to conduct surveys and assess how close the fencing can be moved to the International Border (IB). Punjab shares a 532-km border with Pakistan, which is secured by a barbed wire fence. Considering the terrain and topography, the distance between the fence and the IB varies from a few feet at some places to nearly 2 km at others. As per an estimate, nearly 21,500 acres of land belonging to Punjab’s farmers and another 10,000 acres of the government lies between the fence and the IB. BSF mans the …