7,000 Myanmar citizens entered India since December with border pass | India News
NEW DELHI: Around 7,000 Myanmar nationals have entered India since December, when the terms for visa-free movement of tribes residing on either side of the border were reworked to enable their travel within 10 km of the border with a ‘border pass’ to be issued after capturing biometrics.
Sources in the security establishment said the 7,000 arrivals over the past two months have been through 22 of the total 43 border crossing points. The remaining crossing points are still being activated.
The 1,643-km India-Myanmar border passes through the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland and Manipur.
Though the home ministry was keen to have the free movement regime scrapped in view of the ethnic violence in Manipur having been linked to illegal influx from Myanmar, and had appealed for its suspension until the final decision by ministry of external affairs, opposition by states like Mizoram and diplomatic procedures appear to have come in the way. Finally, in December, the 16-km limit for visa-free movement of tribes was cut to 10 km and stricter controls for Myanmar nationals, were introduced.
