shah-directs-panel-on-demographic-change-to-study-border-areas

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday directed a high-level committee on demographic change to study shifts in population patterns in border districts and assess changes linked to illegal migration and other factors, officials said.

 

Chairing a meeting of the committee, Shah asked its members to visit border areas, metropolitan cities and industrial towns to evaluate demographic changes and identify the factors driving them.

 

The committee was constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs last month to examine demographic changes across the country arising from illegal immigration and other causes, and to recommend measures to address related challenges.

 

The panel is headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar. Its members include the Census Commissioner, former IAS officer Durga Shankar Mishra, former IPS officer Balaji Srivastava and economist Shamika Ravi. The Joint Secretary (Foreigners-I) in the Home Ministry serves as the committee’s member secretary.

 

When announcing the committee’s formation, Shah had described demographic change as a serious issue linked to national security, sovereignty, law and order, social stability and the protection of tribal communities.

Also read: Demographic changes won't be tolerated in border states: Shah

 

According to the government, the committee has been tasked with conducting a scientific assessment of demographic changes taking place across different regions of the country due to illegal immigration and other unusual factors. It will examine the causes of such changes and recommend policy, legislative and administrative interventions.

 

The panel will also study possible drivers of demographic shifts, including cross-border activities, economic opportunities and socio-environmental factors. It has been asked to analyse structural population changes among religious and social communities, particularly where such changes differ significantly from broader demographic trends.

 

In addition, the committee will identify factors such as illegal immigration, abnormal settlement patterns and organised migration that may be contributing to demographic changes.

 

The panel is also expected to recommend a permanent and streamlined mechanism for the legal, fair and time-bound identification, detention and deportation of illegal immigrants residing in the country.