Multi-pronged approach adopted to check infiltration of illegal immigrants: Home Ministry

The Central government on Tuesday said that it has adopted a multi-pronged approach to ensure effective surveillance and domination of international borders to check infiltration of illegal immigrants.

The Ministry of Home Affairs said in a written reply to Parvesh Sahib Singh in Lok Sabha that physical infrastructure like border fencing, floodlighting, construction of border roads and establishment of border outposts have been created.

"Vulnerable border outposts are regularly reviewed and strengthened by deploying additional manpower, special surveillance equipment and other force multipliers. A technological solution in the form of Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) has been implemented in some vulnerable border areas," the statement said.

The ministry informed that border guarding forces conduct regular patrolling and establish observation posts and carry out anti-tunnelling exercises to stop illegal infiltration. However, some illegal immigrants are still able to enter into India in a clandestine and surreptitious manner, mainly due to difficult mountainous and riverine terrain in parts of the long international borders.

It further said that to deal with such illegal immigrants, the powers of the Central government under Section 3 of The Foreigners Act, 1946, have been enforced to detect detain and deport illegal foreign nationals.

The exercise to update NRC 1951 is being conducted under special provisions in respect of State of Assam under The Citizenship Act, 1955 and The Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003, it read.