High-level delegation to meet stakeholders, visit sensitive border areas
A high-level panel constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) arrived in Jammu on Monday for a three-day visit to study demographic changes in the Union Territory attributed to illegal immigration and other abnormal reasons, officials familiar with the development said.
The delegation is being led by Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. The team includes retired IAS officer Durga Shankar Mishra, retired IPS officer Balaji Srivastava and Dr Shamika Ravi. The originally designated chair, retired Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar, did not accompany the team, the official said.
- The panel will meet civil society members and other stakeholders in Jammu.
- It is expected to visit border and other places that have witnessed demographic change.
- The team will also consult senior government officials in Jammu and Kashmir for assessments and inputs.
“The panel will meet various stakeholders, including members of the civil society, to study demographic changes in Jammu,” the official said. The delegation will also hold discussions with senior administration and police officials to gauge local assessments of population patterns, sources added.
“The panel will submit its report within a year.”
Local concerns: areas flagged by security agencies
Security agencies have flagged a rise in suspected illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar across parts of the Jammu region. The presence of undocumented migrants and refugees has been a concern in districts that security officials say have witnessed notable demographic shifts.
According to the report material accompanying the visit, districts where a spike has been noted include Kathua, Samba, Jammu, Kishtwar, Ramban and Doda. Police in Ramban on August 3 detained at least 21 suspected illegal immigrants from Bangladesh in the Banihal area during a verification drive after they were found without valid travel or immigration documents.
| Districts mentioned | Issue |
|---|---|
| Kathua | Reported influx of Bangladeshis and Rohingyas |
| Samba | Reported demographic changes |
| Jammu | Urban and peri-urban population shifts |
| Kishtwar, Ramban, Doda | Border and transit route concerns |
The MHA constituted the committee to study demographic changes in various States and Union Territories arising from illegal immigration and other abnormal causes. Officials said the panel’s mandate includes field visits, stakeholder consultations and assessments that will feed into a consolidated report to be submitted to the ministry within a year.
Implications for administration and policy
Local administrators in Jammu will be called upon to provide data and ground-level inputs to the panel, officials said. The delegation’s interactions with civil society and government functionaries are expected to focus on migration routes, records of unauthorised settlements, verification of identity and documentation, and the challenges faced by local law enforcement.
How the panel’s findings will influence future administrative directives or policy measures in Jammu and Kashmir will depend on the evidence collected during the visits and the recommendations in the report to the MHA. The panel’s visit comes at a time when authorities in parts of the region are intensifying verification and identification drives in response to security and demographic concerns.
The delegation’s three-day schedule in Jammu includes planned visits to locations identified by security and civil administration as having witnessed notable demographic changes, followed by stakeholder meetings and official briefings before the team moves on to other assignments under its national mandate.
