Manipur tightens border vigil to curb influx of illegal migrants amid regional unrest

Guwahati: In view of apprehension of influx of illegal migrants into the Manipur especially due to the turmoil situation in neighbouring countries, Manipur home department asked Deputy Commissioners and Superintendent of Police to keep robust mechanism to prevent anyone from crossing into State Boundaries illegally and must ensure to maintain utmost vigil at international, inter-State and inter-district boundaries to prevent any such movement.

Commissioner- cum secretary (Home) N Ashok Kumar stated in an advisory any such movement, if detected, should be immediately reported and biographic and biometric details of such persons be captured mandatorily. “Such illegal migrants shall have to be kept in put at secured designated locations for providing shelter and humanitarian support without allowing them to get mixed up or naturalised with local Populace”.

The advisory stated, “All such illegal migrants shall be deported after following due procedures. All Deputy Commissioners shall constitute District level Committee with members from District Police to conduct checking at all suspected locations and shall conduct regular review of the same. Deputy Commissioners shall regularly monitor the Exit-Entry Points under the Border Pass System. Tracing of defaulters/ overstayed cases shall be done through District Police.”


It added that the district level Task Force for checking of illegal migrants shall have to be made operational at the earliest. The task force must consist of Additional Superintendent of Police of the District – leader, Officer representing office of DC not below the rank of SDC, representative of Assam Rifles/ BSF/CRPF as desired by team leader and biometric staff.

The Mizoram government is providing training to the district level officials to collect biometrics and biographic data of Myanmar and Bangladeshi refugees. The process of recording biometrics and biographic data of Myanmar and Bangladeshi refugees would start from this month (July).

After a military coup in Myanmar in February 2021, refugees around 35,000. Around 5,000 Myanmar refugees also took shelter in Manipur.

The Manipur government has almost collected the biometric and demographic data of the refugees staying in the state.

Over 2,370 Bangladeshi Bawm community tribals from Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) are also staying in Mizoram for over two years after they fled from their country due to ethnic troubles after the Bangladesh Army launched a crackdown on the tribals.

The MHA had earlier asked both the Manipur and Mizoram governments to capture biographic and biometric details of "illegal migrants" in the two states and complete the process at the earliest. Both the northeastern states had earlier agreed to undertake the collection of biometrics and biographic data of Myanmar nationals.

Over 4,650 people, including women and children, from Myanmar earlier this month fled to Mizoram and took shelter in three locations of Champhai district following a series of armed clashes.

However, as the situation along the India-Myanmar border is relatively calm now majority of the newly arrived Myanmar refugees have returned to their villages in the neighbouring country.