Imphal | The Manipur Legislative Assembly on Monday reaffirmed 1951 as the base year for updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the state, with Home Minister Govindas Konthoujam saying the government would take up the matter with the Centre.

Replying to a question from Opposition MLA K Meghachandra Singh on the updation of the NRC and the availability of original physical records from 1951, Konthoujam said the state government was tracing the old records and would approach the Centre on the issue.

He clarified that the state government cannot undertake the NRC exercise without approval from the Centre. The minister said the Manipur State Population Commission, constituted following an Assembly resolution adopted on August 5, 2022, was already in place.

Konthoujam said the NRC exercise would have to be undertaken cautiously, citing the experience of Assam, where the process has been challenged in courts and the final register has not been made available in the public domain. The state government has repeatedly taken up the issue with the Centre, he said, noting that the Assembly had reaffirmed its earlier NRC resolution on March 1, 2024.

On September 2, the House unanimously passed another resolution reaffirming its earlier decisions on updating the NRC. “We need to cautiously move the Centre so that it would not fail like that of Assam,” Konthoujam said.

24,475 illegal immigrants detected

In response to another question from Opposition MLA Th Lokeshwar Singh, the Home Minister informed the House that 24,475 illegal immigrants had been detected in Manipur so far. Of them, 14,370 were detected in Chandel, 6,545 in Kamjong and 3,560 in Tengnoupal.

Konthoujam said the government had initiated measures to identify illegal immigrants and investigate reports of influx and the alleged unnatural growth of new villages. A 12-member committee headed by former minister Awangbow Newmai was constituted on August 7, 2024, for the exercise, he said. The government had also issued an order on the committee’s Action Taken Report.

He also referred to a Cabinet Sub-Committee constituted on February 17, 2023, under former Tribal Affairs Minister Letpao Haokip, with Awangbow Newmai and Th Basanta Kumar Singh as members.

The Home Department subsequently constituted an Executive Committee on March 24, 2023, headed by Commissioner S Chourasia and comprising senior police and district officials to verify illegal immigrants and assist the Cabinet Sub-Committee.

The verification process was disrupted after violence broke out in the state on May 3, 2023, the minister said.

14,992 sent back to Myanmar

According to Konthoujam, 14,992 of the 24,475 detected illegal immigrants had been sent back to Myanmar, while the rest were staying in temporary shelters in the state. In Kamjong, 5,378 of the 6,545 detected immigrants had been sent back, while 1,167 remained in government camps.

In Tengnoupal, 14 of the 3,560 detected immigrants had been sent back. The remaining 3,546 were staying in areas along the Indo-Myanmar border under the supervision of the respective deputy commissioners after their biometric details were recorded. In Chandel, 9,600 of the 14,370 detected immigrants had been sent back to Myanmar. Biometric details had been collected from 1,308 of the remaining 4,770, the minister said.

The remaining immigrants are being housed in temporary shelters across the three districts. In Kamjong, the shelters are located at Namli, Wanglee, Kaka, Zoro, Iko, Skipi, Huimin Thana and Phaikoh.

In Tengnoupal, the 3,546 immigrants are staying in areas around Sadang village along the international border. In Chandel, those remaining are being housed at Molcham, Gamphajol, Khangtung, L Nampao, Yaingol, Bongjang, Kheljang, New Lajang and nearby villages.

The government has directed the respective deputy commissioners to ensure that the detected illegal immigrants are kept separate from local Indian communities, the minister said.