Guwahati: The Students' United Movement of All Arunachal on Saturday called for an exercise similar to the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam to identify Tibetan refugees settled in Arunachal Pradesh since 1959 when the Dalai Lama entered the state from Tibet.
"Tibetan refugees were settled in a demarcated area at Tanzigang near Bomdila in West Kameng district and the people of Arunachal had accepted them as refugees out of sympathy. But now they have scattered to other places, many have got trade licences, Scheduled Tribes and permanent residence certificates illegally. On July 13, we had organised a protest in Bomdila and had asked the deputy commissioner to disclose the details about a number of Tibetan refugees living in our state. But the officer did not do so. So, we demand NRC update in the state to identify foreigners," the organisation's vice-president Taje Jeke told reporters here.
"Officially 3,000 to 4,000 Tibetan refugees had settled in the district but the number has now gone up to over 10,000," he said.
"Instead of listening to the concerns expressed by the state's indigenous population, the BJP government is planning to implement the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy, 2014, drafted by the Centre, though it is not mandatory for the states. The policy seeks to give 20 per cent reservation in jobs to Tibetan refugees apart from other facilities. The state already has 20 per cent reservation for outsiders living in Arunachal Pradesh and so the share of jobs for the indigenous people will further go down to 60 per cent. We have asked the government not to implement the policy as the indigenous people enjoy preservation and protection of their culture and identity under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act, 1873," Taje said.
State government officials could not be contacted for their recation but Union minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju had recently said in Tawang that the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy was beneficial for the state as it would help in registration of the refugees.
