Over 31,500 refugees from Myanmar, Bangladesh took shelter in Mizoram

Over 31,500 refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh have taken shelter in different parts of Mizoram, an official said.

The number of Myanmar nationals taking refuge in the northeastern state was 31,050 as on January 27, and those from Bangladesh were 541, he said.

The Bangladeshi nationals are lodged in 160 makeshift camps set up in eight villages in Lawngtlai district, the official said.

The Myanmar nationals, mostly from Chin state, fled to Mizoram following a military coup in the neighbouring country in February 2021, while the asylum seekers from Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) came to the state after a military offensive against an ethnic insurgent group, he said.

Mizoram shares a 510-km long porous border with Myanmar and a 318-km boundary with Bangladesh.

Mizoram Home Minister Lalchamliana had recently informed the assembly that the state government has so far released over Rs 3.8 crore as part of relief measures for the Myanmar nationals, and Rs 30 lakh for those from Bangladesh.