Mizoram Seeks Official Policy to Manage Bangladesh Refugee Influx

Aizawl: Mizoram Home Minister K. Sapdanga wants a formal policy to manage refugees pouring in from Bangladesh. He spoke on July 23 at a seminar regarding tribal subjugation and the Chittagong Accord. Thousands flee the Chittagong Hill Tracts as majority communities seize ancestral lands. It is a mounting crisis.

Refugees include the ethnic Mizo Bawm tribe alongside Chakma and Bru communities. The state Home Department reports that over 2,000 Bawm people have lived in Mizoram since 2022. They fled military operations against insurgents. Lawngtlai, Lunglei, and Mamit districts share a 318-km border with Bangladesh.

Sapdanga noted the complexity of the situation. "In this situation, it is necessary to carefully consider how Zo ethnic people and other communities fleeing Bangladesh should be received and accommodated. The government must devote serious thought to this matter," he said. Churches and local groups currently handle the humanitarian load.

Lalmuanpuia Punte, political adviser to the Chief Minister, joined the call for deeper understanding of these cross-border movements. Meanwhile, the Young Mizo Association and student groups like the Mizo Zirlai Pawl and Mizo Students' Union fear the long-term impact of the influx. They specifically flagged concerns regarding rising numbers of Chakma migrants entering the state.