President Pranab Mukherjee urged to deport illegal settlers from Arunachal Pradesh

ITANAGAR: The opposition People's Party of Arunachal (PPA) has urged President Pranab Mukherjee to arrange for early deportation of illegal Chakma and Hajong settlers from the state.

"Settlement of large number of Chakma and Hajong refugees in different pockets of Arunachal Pradesh has caused serious demographic consequences as well as law and order problems. An early deportation of the illegal settlers through diplomatic initiatives with the government of Bangladesh is urgently required," the PPA said in a memorandum submitted to Mukherjee yesterday.

The party also said that "reckless and unplanned" allocation of more than 200 power projects to various power developers has threatened the sanctity of the Inner Line Regulation Act of 1873.

Further, the central government's hydro power policy enacted in 2002 also deviated from its policy of protective development vis-à-vis the tribal people of the state, it said.

Arunachal Civil Society, a social body, also submitted a memorandum to Mukerjee urging him to solve the issue of stapled visa given to residents of Arunachal Pradesh by China and also find a solution to the vexed Arunachal-Assam boundary issue.