Training of district-level officials on the ‘Foreigners Identification Portal and Biometric Enrolment’ for displaced persons from Myanmar and Bangladeshi nationals are almost completed in all 11 districts of Mizoram. According to the Mizoram Home Department official, Rs 38 lakh has been earmarked for the exercise, and the expenditure would be borne by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). 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.
After a military coup in Myanmar in February 2021, there were around 35,000 refugees in Mizoram. Another 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 are also staying in Mizoram for over two years after they fled their country due to ethnic troubles after the Bangladesh Army launched a crackdown on tribals. Over 4,650 people, including women and children, from Myanmar earlier this month fled to Mizoram following a series of armed clashes.
