While the Bangladeshi infiltrators pose a grave threat to the security and economy of the country, Odisha which gets an influx of 500 infiltrators daily in an organized way has faced the a spurt in crimes in which these illegal inhabitants are involved, said speakers at a national convention of the Bharat Raksha Manch here, reiterating that the infiltration of Bangladeshis should be treated as the biggest internal security problem.
Odisha has become the hopping point for illegal immigrants who enter the porous coastal villages and many places in Kendrapada and Jagatsinghpur coast have become mini-Bangladesh as the migrant population keeps ballooning every year. The intruders have turned the Bhitarkanika forests into a safe haven for illegal activities. There are nearly 60 clusters of hamlets on the fringes of the Bhitarkanika Park and several villages have come up illegally within the sanctuary itself. The fragile eco system has the country’s second biggest mangrove system, which is now being severely destroyed.
According to Anil Dhir of the Manch, there are 54 towns in the State which have a sizeable and easily identifiable Bangladeshi population and this is increasing every day. Dhir has also compiled a list of villages where these settlers have put up. The infiltrators, with political patronage, are getting their illegal and unlawful presence legalized. They have got ration cards, voter’s identity card and BPl cards, some of them have even got government jobs.
The Manch also expressed concern that all the marine police stations are defunct in the State as they do not have trained manpower. The speed boats and interceptors crafts are rotting. The matter of issuing Biometric ID cards to all fishermen is not complete. To create public consciousness and highlight this grave national issue, the Manch organised a massive rally.
A new list of national office bearers of the Manch was declared. Suryakant Kelkar was re-nominated as the national convener while Murali Manohar Sharma was nominated as the national co-convener and former MP Raghunandan Sharma as its national president. Anil Dhir is the new national secretary of the Manch. Former Vice Chancellor of the Utkal University of Culture Dr Bimlendu Mohanty was nominated as the president of the State unit.