The Mizoram government is awaiting instructions from the Centre to begin biometric enrollment for more than 33,000 Myanmar refugees in the northeastern state. According to the official, a new portal for biometric enrollment has already been set up.
Previously, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma mentioned that a biometric enrollment portal had been established for data collection and will be used soon. An official said, “We are waiting for an instruction from the Centre. We will start collecting the biometric data of Myanmar nationals once we receive the instruction.”
In April last year, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs instructed Mizoram and Manipur, neighboring Myanmar, to gather the biometric and biographical information of “illegal immigrants” within their territories. By June of that year, it urged the states to complete this effort by September’s end, requiring them to devise a plan and kick-start the procedure accordingly.
While the Mizoram government initially complied with the Centre’s directive by organizing training sessions and assigning nodal officers, the Council of Ministers, in a meeting last September, opted against carrying out biometric and biographic registration for Myanmar refugees. Their decision was based on the reasoning that conducting such registrations was not prudent, especially with the upcoming state assembly polls scheduled for November that same year.
Lalduhoma mentioned that refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh in the state were worried about deportation because of the Centre’s biometric data collection directive. He recalled his January meeting with Shah, where Shah promised that no refugees would be deported until peace returned to the neighboring countries.
The State Home Department reports 33,835 Myanmar nationals in the state, including 12,901 children. Champhai district hosts the most refugees at 14,212. About 10,552 are in 111 relief camps across six districts, while 9,269 are outside camps, staying with relatives, friends, or in rented houses.
Over 1,800 Bangladeshi nationals are sheltering in southernmost Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district, while about 8,000 internally displaced Mizoram residents are taking refuge within the state, as per the home department.