CCEA nod to revised cost of scheme for updating NRC in Assam

New Delhi : The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved the Revised Cost Estimates (RCE) of the scheme for updation of National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam up to December 31 this year at a cost of Rs 1,220.93 crore.

The scheme of NRC, 1951, is specific to Assam and covers about 3.29 crore applicants, an official statement said.

"The National Register of Citizens, Assam, will contain the names of genuine Indian citizens and will help the government to check illegal immigration in India," it said. 

The first draft of NRC covering 1.9 crore persons out of 3.29 crore applicants was published on December 31 last year and included names of applicants whose process of verification has been completed.

The release said that verification of remaining applicants is at various stages of scrutiny and the complete draft NRC will be published by June 30 this year. Claims and objections will be received subsequently and disposed off before publication of final NRC on December 31 this year. 

The NRC will include persons whose names appear in any of the electoral rolls up to the midnight of March 24, 1971 or National Register of Citizens, 1951 and their descendants.

The release said that 3.29 crore persons applied with 6.63 crore documents in 2015 for inclusion of their names in the NRC. This was followed by extensive field and document verification in respect of each applicant.

The release said preparation of NRC is the most extensive citizen engaging exercise, which touches the life of every resident of Assam, and is part of the action for the fulfillment of Assam Accord and understanding arrived in a tripartite meeting held in 2005 at the level of Prime Minister. 

The NRC Assam, the register containing names of Indian Citizens in Assam, was prepared in 1951 as a non-statutory process by recording particulars of all the persons enumerated during 1951 Census.

The Assam agitation (1979-85) against the illegal foreigners led to the signing of Assam Accord on August 15, 1985 between the Central government, state government, All India Students' Union (AASU) and All Assam Gan Sangram Parishad (AAGSP), which stipulated March 24, 1971 as the cut-off date for identification and deportation of illegal migrants from East Pakistan (Bangladesh). 

Accordingly, the Citizenship Act, 1955 was amended by inserting section 6A as special provisions for Assam.

In a tripartite meeting of the Central and State governments and the AASU chaired by the Prime Minister in May, 2005, it was agreed to update NRC, 1951 and the modalities were approved by the Central government in consultation with the state government. 

The release said that the exercise of NRC update in Assam commenced in December 2013 in pursuance of the Supreme Court's direction, adding that the court was continuously monitoring the progress.