No benefit schemes for families with more than 4 kids: Manipur adopts resolution

Guwahati: Manipur has opted not to extend the benefits of several beneficiary schemes to families with more than four children, taking a page out of Assam's book in doing so. The decision was made on Thursday night during a state cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister N Biren Singh. The creation of the Manipur State Population Commission and its execution as an ordinance was approved by the cabinet.

According to Minister Sapam Ranjan, families with more than four children would no longer be taken into account for the benefits of various beneficiary programmes under the population commission. "Earlier, the state Assembly had adopted a private member resolution to establish the population commission," he said.

The Population and Women Empowerment Policy of Assam was put into effect by the Assam government on January 1 of last year. It prohibited those with more than two children from being elected to panchayats and other local bodies as well as being eligible for government jobs, NIE reported.

The Manipur minister claimed that the cabinet held a thorough discussion on the topics of having fake Aadhaar cards and elements violating ILP (Inner Line Permit) rules. The ILP is an official travel document that, in addition to Nagaland, Mizoram, and Arunachal Pradesh, permits inward travel of Indian nationals from other states to the protected states of Manipur for a brief period.

The population of Manipur's hill districts increased by 250% between 2001 and 2011, and by 153.3% between 2001 and 1971, according to official statistics. Prior to this, 19 tribal organisations in the state had petitioned the Center to establish "centres of operation" for the prompt discovery and deportation of the alleged influx of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, Nepal, and Myanmar.

They had urged PM Narendra Modi in a joint memo to execute the National Register of Citizens, or NRC, in order to protect the genuine citizens.