Indian Army Cautions Mizoram Government

By Sushanta Talukdar

Guwahati, Feb 7 : The Army has cautioned the Mizoram Government that illegal immigration from Myanmar into the State needs to be discouraged as it has security overtones.

General Officer Commanding 3 Corps Lt Gen N. K. Singh told journalists at the Corps headquarters at Rangapahar in Nagaland’s commercial capital Dimapur that he had taken up the issue of illegal immigration of people from Myanmar with Mizoram Chief Minister Lalthanhawla and impressed upon him that such immigration was not good for security in the long run and should be discouraged.

The GOC said movement of people across the India-Myanmar border was now more restricted to prevent entry of undesired elements and to monitor the movement of people.

He said quite a large number of people had been trying to cross the border point specified under the free movement regime without permits.

This past year a total of 162 Myanmarese had been sent back for not possessing required travel documents, according to official figures of the Mizoram Government, he added.

Gen Singh said erection of border fencing along the India-Myanmar border had started along the Manipur-Mizoram border while in Mizoram it would start soon. However, the Nagaland Government was not keen on erection of border fencing along the Nagaland-Myanmar border, he said.

The GOC said the overall situation in Mizoram was peaceful. However, some people in Mizoram can be more magnanimous and facilitate the return of the Bru refugees from the refugee camps in Tripura.