Manipur govt extends timeline to identify illegal Myanmar migrants upto Sept 30

Way2barak, Aug 1 : The Manipur government has extended the timeline of the committee to identify illegal Myanmar immigrants staying in the state’s Chandel and Tengnoupal districts upto September 30, officials said here on Tuesday.

Manipur government’s Home Department’s Joint Secretary Mayengbam Veto Singh said that the timeline of the verification and identification committee was earlier set for completion of the exercise on March 31 and now extended upto September 30.

Singh in an order said that senior IAS officer Pradeep Kumar Jha, Commissioner to Manipur government, shall discharge the duties and assignments as Chairman of the Committee during the period of leave or absence during station leaving days of Shailesh Kumar Chourasia, Commissioner of the state government.

The order said that the Committee has started visiting the districts from Tuesday for monitoring the activities of capturing biometrics of the illegal migrants who have entered the state including the recently reported 718 fresh cases who had entered crossing India- Myanmar border illegally.

The Manipur government — on the advice of the Union Home Ministry (MHA) – last week began collecting the biometric data of illegal Myanmar immigrants in the northeastern state and the exercise would be completed by September.

A team of officials of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), deputed by the MHA, assisted the state government officials in collecting the biometrics of illegal immigrants at the Foreigners’ Detention Centre at Sajiwa in Imphal East district on July 29.

The exercise would continue in all districts until the data of all illegal Myanmar immigrants in the state are collected.

As many as 718 Myanmar nationals, including 301 children and 208 women, have entered Manipur’s Chandel district on July 22 and 23 due to the ongoing clashes between the Army and the civil forces in the neighbouring country.

The Myanmar nationals are now staying in seven locations of the Chandel district — Lajang, Bonse, New Samtal, New Lajang, Yangnomphai, Yangnomphai Saw Mill, and Aivomjang — all villages along the India-Myanmar border.

A report by a sub-committee of the Manipur Cabinet headed by Tribal Affairs and Hill Development Minister Letpao Haokip in March and April this year has revealed that 2,187 illegal immigrants from Myanmar have set up settlements in 41 locations in four districts –Tengnoupal, Chandel, Kamjong and Churachandpur.

Before the ethnic violence broke out on May 3, the Manipur government had decided to identify the Myanmar national who had earlier sought asylum in the state, and keep them at the designated detention centres.

Around 5,000 immigrants, including women and children, have fled from the conflict-hit Myanmar, after the military took power in February 2021.

Haokip is one of the 10 tribal MLAs who has called for a separate administration (equivalent to separate state) following the outbreak of the ethnic violence on May 3.

Among the 10 MLAs, seven, including Haokip, belong to the BJP.

Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said that infiltrators from across the border and militants have caused the ongoing unrest in the state and it is not an enmity between two communities.

Manipur shares around 400 km unfenced border with Myanmar.