Singhat identified for third shelter home of refugees
Source: Chronicle News Service / DIO

CCpur, April 01 2023: Close on the heels of the Cabinet Sub Committee on Identification of Illegal Immigrants identifying shelter home in Chandel and Tengnoupal districts for displaced Myanmarese nationals, Committee members on Saturday visited Singhat (Singngat) sub-divisional headquarters and identified site for setting up another temporary shelter home for the refugees who entered Manipur due to the unrest situation in the neighbouring country.

Tribal Affairs & Hills Development minister Letpao Haokip, who chairman of the Cabinet Sub-Committee, was accompanied by other members - Water Resource minister Awangbow Newmai, Education minister Th Basantakumar Singh, commissioner (Home) T Ranjit, IGP (Intelligence) Kabib K and SP (Immigration) Priyadarshni Laishram.

Along with officials of Churachandpur district administration including DC Sharath Arroju and SP Shivanand Surve, the team identified four barracks inside the Singngat police station complex for the shelter home.

Addressing the district officials there, minister Letpao said that the Myanmarese nationals who fled their country in the backdrop of the restive situation there should be identified and kept in a shelter home.

They will be provided food, lodging facility and other basic amenities including health care on humanitarian ground.

Identity card should also be issued to the inmates, who will be allowed to stay in the camp until normalcy returns in their home country or any order in this regard is made by the state or central authority, he added.

"The crux here is to monitor their movement closely and deport all of them once normalcy returns in their home country," Letpao said.

The committee members also shared their thoughts on the modus operandi for identifying Myanmarese nationals who are feared to have sneaked into the state's territory.

The district officials were also briefed to encourage individuals and village authorities not to harbour foreign nationals and instead report their presence in their jurisdiction so that they (foreign nationals) do not mix freely with the natives.

DC Sharath Arroju said that intensive verification drives will again start in the district based on intelligence reports by teams comprising police, SDO staff, biometric personnel, etc., while SP Shivanand briefed the committee members about the verification drive undertaken by the district police for identification of Myanmarese nationals.

Speaking to local reporters later at the DC's office chamber here, minister Letpao announced that any Myanmarese national found avoiding the shelter camp should be dealt with severely.

He urged all concerned to extend cooperation to the state government and also advised the Myanmarese nationals to come forward and register their names with the local authority and not to be apprehensive about the steps taken by the state government.

The minister further said that they (foreign nationals) will not be arrested or detained but will be provided all humanitarian assistance temporarily till situation favours their return or any decision in this regard is taken up by the competent central or state authorities.

Stringent legal action will also be initiated against anyone found harbouring or providing accommodation/shelter without the permission of the government, he cautioned.

It may be mentioned here that around 129 Myanmarese nationals have been put in detention camp after they were arrested few months back in the district.

Replying to a query, Let-pao said that the detained Myanmarese nationals are safe in the detention centre.

The identified structures for shelter home at Singngat have the capacity to house at least 200 people.

Taking cognizance of the apprehension of the general public regarding influx of illegal immigrants along the Indo-Myanmar border, the state government is taking up immediate steps for proper identification and preventing any foreign national from naturalisation among the native population.

The Sub-Committee has also identified similar shelter homes in Tengnoupal and Chandel districts.

Care-taker chairman of ADC Churachandpur Khai-pao Haokip also joined the team during the visit on Saturday.

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