An intellectual exchange at Manipur University was on Monday organised by All Manipur Students’ Union and Manipur University Students’ Union on the topic, “Updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC): Collective Mobilisation and Demographic Governance in Manipur”. The event drew participation from academics, students and members of the media. Addressing the participants as a resource person during the programme, demographer R.K Narendra Singh put forth a proposal to constitute a panel of experts to study options for updating or freshly implementing the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Manipur. Singh said concerns over illegal immigration in the state were visible, pointing to instances of demographic imbalance and rapid expansion of settlements in certain areas.
He argued that either updating the NRC or initiating a fresh exercise was crucial in view of long-term implications for the state. Referring to the Centre’s plan to conduct the Census in 2027, Singh described the exercise as essential for policymaking, welfare programmes and delimitation, while noting that census data alone would not suffice for carrying out an NRC exercise. He stressed the need for a dedicated panel to examine available records and determine whether the NRC should be updated from the 1951 register or conducted anew.
Singh also called for strengthening the Manipur State Population Commission and making it fully functional to address demographic challenges at what he described as a critical juncture. It may be mentioned that protests and campaigns for updating the NRC ahead of the next Census have intensified in the state in recent months.
