Kendrapara, June 28 (UNI) The Kendrapara police, with support from the district administration, have begun the identification process of Bangladeshi infiltrators residing in the coastal areas of Mahakalapada and Rajnagar blocks in this district.
As part of the ongoing drive, police have detained around a dozen Bengali-speaking individuals from the Tubi and San areas under the jurisdiction of the Jamboo Marine Police Station, on suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals.
Their documents are currently being verified.
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, during his visit to Kendrapara on June 9, directed the district administration to take stringent action against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants residing in the area.
Acting on the Chief Minister’s instructions, the district administration, in coordination with the police, launched a drive to identify infiltrators.
The detained suspects are being housed in a local school, where authorities are verifying their identity documents.
However, Kendrapara Superintendent of Police Siddharth Kataria and District Collector Smruti Ranjan Pradhan have remained tight-lipped on the ongoing operation.
Notably, a similar identification drive was carried out in 2004, during which 1,551 Bangladeshi immigrants were identified in Mahakalapada block, 51 in Rajnagar, and 41 in Pattamundai.
The district administration is expected to inform the home department to initiate deportation procedures for those confirmed to be Bangladeshi nationals.
According to official sources, Kendrapara district hosts the highest number of suspected immigrants (1,649), followed by Jagatsinghpur (1,112), Malkangiri (655), Bhadrak (199), Nabarangpur (106), Khurdha (17), and Bargarh (2).
Despite 1,551 Bangladeshi infiltrators from Kendrapara being served ‘quit India’ notices on January 15, 2005, they have not yet been deported.
