150 Bangladeshi nationals airlifted from Jammu and Kashmir for deportation
The 150 people are among around 500 individuals, mostly from Bangladesh, detained during a recent police survey across the Union Territory
Indian authorities airlifted 150 Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in Jammu and Kashmir to Bagdogra airport in West Bengal yesterday (5 October), where they are being handed over to the Border Security Force for deportation to Bangladesh.
The 150 people are among around 500 individuals, mostly from Bangladesh, detained during a recent police survey across the Union Territory. They were being housed at a police facility on the outskirts of Srinagar, says the Indian Express.
Most of those detained had lived in the Kashmir Valley for many years and worked in menial jobs such as ragpicking.
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The detained group also includes Rohingya immigrants from Myanmar, who are scheduled to be deported in subsequent batches.
The deportation follows a field visit two months ago by a high-level committee on demographic changes established by India's Union Home Ministry in May.
The committee has been tasked with studying demographic shifts resulting from illegal immigration over the past 15 years and recommending remedial measures within one year.
During its work, the committee was briefed that 7,656 Rohingya and 504 Bangladeshi nationals were documented in Jammu and Kashmir.
Of the Rohingya, 6,737 were in Jammu, while 46 Bangladeshi nationals were recorded there. The remaining members of both groups were in Kashmir.
A total of 117 criminal cases have been registered against the immigrants, including 101 in Jammu and 16 in Kashmir.
