Amit Shah To Address Border District Police Chiefs In New Delhi On Thursday

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah will address the Border District Superintendents of Police Conference-2026 in New Delhi on Thursday as part of a major initiative aimed at strengthening security and coordination in India's frontier regions.

Senior police officers from districts located along India's international borders are expected to participate in the conference, which will focus on enhancing border management, improving intelligence sharing, countering cross-border crimes and strengthening coordination among various security and law enforcement agencies.

The conference is also expected to review emerging security challenges along India's borders and outline future priorities for policing in sensitive frontier regions.

Meanwhile, representatives of 14 civil society organisations (CSOs) from Manipur have urged the Union government to update the National Register of Citizens (NRC) of 1951 before conducting the proposed Census 2027 exercise in the state.

A delegation led by Shanta Nahakpam met senior officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and submitted a memorandum outlining their demands.

The delegation held discussions with Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India; Mahatma Sandeep Namdeo, joint secretary (foreigners-1) and Niraj Kumar Bansood, joint secretary (NorthEast in MHA).

According to Nahakpam, the organisations believe that an updated NRC would help address demographic concerns and identify indigenous residents as well as illegal immigrants in the state.

"We believe that an updated NRC will help resolve the present crisis in Manipur by identifying indigenous people and those who have illegally migrated from neighbouring countries," Nahakpam, convenor of the 14 CSOs, said.

Demand For NRC And Census To be Linked

The organisations have proposed that the NRC updation process be completed before the Census exercise in Manipur or be carried out simultaneously through a tripartite framework involving the Central government, the Manipur government and representatives of civil society organisations.

As part of the proposed framework, the groups suggested linking the NRC of 1951 with the 2027 Census data.

“We have appealed to update the National Register of Citizens of 1951 before conducting the proposed Census 2027 in Manipur or simultaneously alongside Census 2027 by signing (Tripartite) a framework of 'pre-conditions' among the Government of India, Government of Manipur and representatives of CSOs of Manipur,” said Nahakpam.

According to the memorandum, individuals unable to establish a documentary link between the 1951 NRC records and the 2027 Census, or those unable to establish family lineage records, should undergo further scrutiny regarding their citizenship status under applicable laws and procedures determined jointly by the Union and State governments.

“We have also appealed to the Central government representatives to allow nomination of members or commissioners of the Manipur Population Commission to the high level committee on demographic changes as either member or permanent/special invitee wherever it is applicable and or any authorised person of the state government,” Nahakpam said

The organisations also demanded representation in committees examining demographic changes in the state, including participation in any high-level committees constituted by the Centre on the issue.

Concerns Over Demographic Changes

The civil society groups argued that demographic changes in Manipur have contributed to political and social tensions in recent years.

"There is a need for a comprehensive study of demographic changes in Manipur. Several communities have begun demanding separate administration or greater autonomy, and many people believe illegal immigration has had a significant impact on the state's demographic profile," Nahakpam told ETV Bharat.

The groups further requested that the final population figures of Census 2027 in Manipur be withheld until the NRC updation process is completed and that no delimitation exercise be undertaken before the completion of the NRC revision.

The organisations pointed out that the Manipur Legislative Assembly had previously passed resolutions seeking updation of the NRC in the state.

"One such resolution was submitted to former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla on January 16, 2023. The Manipur government reiterated its request for implementation of the NRC in a subsequent communication sent to the Centre on June 12, 2024," Nahakpam concluded.

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