Imphal: Manipur Police and Assam Rifles on Monday caught a Myanmar national for trespassing into Manipur near Moreh in Tengnoupal district.
The national was paraded for a few minutes by the Indian forces at an area of the border fencing before being pushed back into Myanmar.
The action was taken under the instruction of Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, who has accused Myanmar nationals of deforestation, poppy cultivation, and drug menace.
Singh on Monday said that the collection of biometric details for identification of Myanmar nationals in Manipur has already begun and the Centre had asked Manipur and Mizoram to complete the exercise by September end. However, the Manipur government will ask for an extension by a year to complete the task.
The statement of the chief minister comes at a time when the central and state police are taking heightened vigils on the porous Manipur-Myanmar border. The government has also asked districts to identify illegal immigrants in their respective areas.
The Manipur government has emphasized the need for the border-guarding force to promptly return these illegal immigrants back to their home country.
The infiltration of Myanmar nationals (refugees) into Manipur is around 2500 at present. They are taking shelter at different detention centers in the state.
The campaign for biometric capture of all illegal Myanmar nationals started on July 29, 2023, with the assistance of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) team at Foreigners’ Detention Centre, Sajiwa, Imphal East district. However, the campaign has been slow due to the ethnic violence between the Kukis and Meiteis on May 3.