Mizoram completes 58% biometric enrolment of Myanmar refugees; process slowed by connectivity issues

Mizoram has completed 58.15 per cent biometric enrolment of more than 31,000 Myanmar refugees currently sheltered across all 11 districts of the state, a senior Home Department official said. 

The state has also collected biometric and biographic data of 10.84 per cent of asylum seekers from Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), he added.

The enrolment exercise for refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh began in July following a directive from the Ministry of Home Affairs and is being carried out through the Foreigners Identification Portal and the Biometric Enrolment system. According to officials, 31,214 people from Myanmar—mostly from Chin State—are residing in Mizoram, with border district Champhai hosting the highest number.

Mizoram is also sheltering 2,354 refugees from Bangladesh’s CHT region, who have taken refuge mainly in Lawngtlai district, followed by Lunglei district and Thenzawl town in Serchhip district. In addition, 6,953 internally displaced people from Manipur are living in various parts of the state.

Officials said that biometric details of over 200 of the 2,354 Bangladeshi refugees have been collected so far. However, the process has been hampered by challenges such as technical glitches, slow or absent internet connectivity in remote villages, and difficulty in identifying refugees residing outside relief camps.

“While data collection is easier in organised camps, it becomes difficult when refugees live with relatives, friends, or in rental accommodations,” the official said.

The Myanmar nationals fled to Mizoram following the February 2021 military coup, while members of the Bawm tribe from Bangladesh arrived after a military operation targeting an ethnic insurgent group in 2022. Both communities share close ethnic ties with the Mizos, contributing to the state’s humanitarian response.