A Study on Illegal Immigration in North East India: Problems and Prospects

Abstract

Migration is a global phenomenon. It is a relatively permanent movement of a person or group of population across a political boundary to a new residential area or community. Migration tends to create complex demographic patterns that profoundly impact the unity/integrity of the immigrating states. Legal/illegal migration or immigration in the North East India, it should be noted that (i) the region is bounded by five countries i.e. Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Myanmar and Nepal; and (ii) The region is cut off from the rest of the country, being only connected to the ‘bottle neck” a narrow strip of land just about 22km. long land corridor passing through Silliguri town.  The region is surrounded by different foreign countries and is also the route of migration to the Assam Valley and the Manipur Valley from time immemorial. The present paper is an attempt to analyze the genesis of the immigration problem in this part (NER) of India. At the same time, it will also look into the various policies and programmes initiated by the Government of India, which help in proliferating the immigration crisis in the region. Finally, the paper will examine and suggest some possible remedies to diffuse the turmoil and menace of immigration, in particular from the NE States of India.