DMAPUR, JUNE 20 (MExN): The Lotha Students Union (LSU) today expressed dismay at the Wokha district administration for “releasing 9 ILP defaulters handed over to the authority on June 14, after levying a petty fine of Rs. 500.”
“Such callous act on the part of the government is uncalled for, especially when the Naga society is confronted with the rampant inflow of illegal immigrants which are posing serious socio-economic problems in the State,” a press note from the LSU President, Lipemo M Tsopoe and General Secretary, Ashanthung Humtsoe stated.
The union said it is “shocked and disappointed at the lackadaisical approach of our district administration whose primary responsibility is to ensure the effective implementation of laws such as the ILP regulation and provide homeland security of the highest standards to protect our tribal population from exploitation, domination and extinction.”
It demanded that the administration provide the notified order, guideline in the state government gazette which empowers our district administration to impose fine on ILP defaulters.
“Uncontrolled and unregulated immigration into indigenous societies is a threat to the survival and continuity of sensitive indigenous tribal communities such as ours where trade and commerce is at a nascent stage of adaptation and practice which will take a few years before our own locals are able to compete in trade and commerce with the non-locals in an open market,” it reasoned.
The LSU said that this “threat is not just for the people in Wokha district but the state as a whole,” while urging all Nagas and the State Government to take up the issue of illegal immigrants on top priority with utmost urgency and seriousness.
It expressed regret that despite repeated appeals, the district administration has failed to provide any data with regards to the exact number of non-locals registered in the ILP cell office of Wokha district.
The union as such demanded an explanation for the delay in furnishing the data. It also demanded that the administration furnish the required data within 7 days in the media, “failing which the union will not hesitate to agitate…”
The LSU further appealed to the Government of Nagaland to take a serious note of the “higher influx of illegal immigrants in the state where the security of our state and the future of our people is at stake unless immediate measures are taken up by the government of the day.”
It urged the government to draft and notify standard ILP regulation guidelines as till now “it appears that the state government has no Standard Operation Procedures (SOP) or guidelines with regards to the ILP regulation unlike other states like Mizoram which has already notified clear ILP guidelines in their Government Gazette.”
The LSU noted that there is an urgent need for reform in the government with focus on regulatory and IT reforms.
“Regulatory reforms starting from drafting and notification of Nagaland ILP guidelines with special emphasis on stringent scrutiny of applicants from certain districts of Assam such as Karimganj, Hailakandi and Cachar which are infested with suspected illegal Immigrants,” it stated.
It further stressed that IT reforms are of paramount importance to implement an e-Governance online ILP solution and mandate the same in order to ensure elimination of lapses and loopholes in the system, thereby allowing effective monitoring and scrutiny of illegal immigration into the State.
“Immediate focus on both these regulatory and IT reforms taken up today by our government will enable a secure society and allow our indigenous Naga tribes to sustain ourselves towards a thriving and prosperous future for generations to come,” it said.
