Nagaland Extends ILP in Dimapur | 11 Dec 2019

Why in News

Recently, the Nagaland government has extended the Inner Line Permit (ILP) system to the district of Dimapur.

  • This step was taken to exempt the entire district from the purview of the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB).
  • So far, Dimapur was the only place in Nagaland which was not under the ILP system because the district is a commercial hub and has a mixed population (often referred to as ‘Mini India’).
  • Recently Manipur has also been brought under the purview of ILP System. Thus, the entire northeast India has been exempted from CAB except for Sikkim and non-tribal areas in Assam and Tripura.

Key Points

  • The extension of ILP to Dimapur has been issued under section 2 of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873 by the governor of Nagaland.
  • The extension of the ILP regime makes it mandatory for “every non-indigenous person” who entered the district after November 21, 1979, to obtain an ILP within 90 days.
  • Exemptions:
    • Any non-indigenous persons living in Dimapur prior to November 21, 1979, with a certificate from the Deputy Commissioner.
    • Any non-indigenous person passing through Dimapur to other states as a transit passenger with a valid document.

Citizenship Amendment Bill,2019 and North-East India

  • Protected by the ILP System: Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Mizoram have been exempted from the provisions of the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), 2019
  • Sixth Schedule Areas: The whole of Meghalaya (except a part of Shillong), Mizoram and the tribal areas of Tripura and Assam are also exempted from the CAB.
    • The Sixth Schedule contains special provisions for the administration of tribal areas in the four north-eastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.

Inner Line Permit

  • Inner Line Permit is an official travel document issued by the concerned State Government to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected/restricted area for a limited period.
  • It is a special permit required by “outsiders” from other regions of the country to enter the notified states.
  • It is based on the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act (BEFR), 1873.
    • This act was enacted during the British era to protect the British interests from the hill tribals who used to invade the British subjects.
    • An imaginary line known as the inner-line was created to divide between the two communities so that neither party could go beyond the line without a permit from the appropriate authorities.

Source: TH