West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday said that around 4,800 illegal immigrants have been sent back to Bangladesh from holding centres in border districts, while 836 others are awaiting deportation.
Adhikari said illegal immigration remains a major concern and claimed that the state government has handed over land to the Border Security Force (BSF) for fencing work along around 100 km of the India–Bangladesh border out of the required 556 km.
“We have handed over to the BSF around 100 km stretch of land out of 556 km required for fencing, and prioritised the Chicken’s Neck corridor in north Bengal,” he said while addressing a preparatory meeting for a BJP training camp.
The Chicken’s Neck, officially known as the Siliguri Corridor, is a narrow strategic stretch in north Bengal linking the Northeast with the rest of India.
Adhikari said deportation of illegal immigrants not covered under the Citizenship Amendment Act is being carried out under a Union government law and they are being handed over directly to the BSF.
“Around 4,800 illegal immigrants have been sent back from holding centres set up in the state’s border districts,” he said, adding that 836 remain in detention awaiting deportation.
He also claimed that many illegal immigrants have left on their own from border points such as Hakimpur in North 24 Parganas district.
“The demography of Bengal has changed,” Adhikari said, alleging that the issue of infiltration was ignored by the previous Trinamool Congress government for political reasons.
Also read: Politics of disillusionment: Bengal’s ‘change of change’
He further said census work has now begun in the state, with house surveys scheduled from August 1 to 15, and completion expected by next February, followed by delimitation.
Adhikari also highlighted the state’s Annapurna Yojana scheme, under which Rs 3,000 each has been transferred to 50 lakh women beneficiaries.
“On the very first day, we gave the Annapurna Yojana benefit to 28,25,769 women, which is our biggest achievement,” he said.
Defending the 12-page application form for beneficiaries, he said verification was necessary as public funds were involved.
“The money to be given is from the government exchequer. So it has to be properly verified,” he said.
He also alleged irregularities in the earlier Lakshmir Bhandar scheme, claiming that 27 lakh beneficiaries were not on voter lists and that three lakh male beneficiaries had wrongly availed the scheme.
He termed the alleged irregularities as “dangerous corruption”, adding that the government’s new process would ensure transparency in the coming years.
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