By Toki Blah
c. Temporary Resident Status (Red)
Last but not least, in fact, the most crucial component of Influx, is the floating non-tribal population. Local labour is expensive whereas outside labour is cheap. The flow of outside labour into Meghalaya, especially in the mining and construction sectors is nothing but enactment of the laws of supply and demand. It is when this imported cheap labour begins to take permanent roots, in both urban and rural Meghalaya, that our concerns begin and the trouble starts. The least we can do under such circumstances is to ensure that the labour that comes into Meghalaya is not allowed to take permanent roots. Here lies the answer to the influx problem.
In view of Meghalaya’s sad experience with our Infiltration Check Gates and Work Permit System, it is logical to assume that control of influx can no longer be entrusted to the Government alone nor to any of its designated agencies, simply because they cannot be trusted. Influx control will have to be by the people themselves working together as stakeholders towards a common objective. THIS IS THE CUTTING EDGE FACTOR THE 3 TIER CARD SYSTEM HAS OVER THE ILP.
This Temporary Card shall also apply to tourists who come to visit and enjoy the tourism assets of Meghalaya. These people come to enjoy and with ready money to spend. They add to the economy of the state. They must be welcomed and provided with security assurances that we welcome them and the money they bring. The Temporary card will be their warranty. We must recognise and understand that Permanent settlement of outsiders and not Entry of outsiders is the problem. The three tier card system seeks to eliminate this problem through the participation of the local communities. Till date there is no viable counter measure against such developments except for the demand for ILP which apparently is not forthcoming. The problem of influx remains unresolved. The temporary ID card proposes to contain the problem.
Applications for issue of temporary ID cards can be made from the office of any BDO, SDO or DC. (This provision is for the benefit of contractors who wish to apply on behalf of labourers they wish to bring from outside. Details of each applicant as per requirement of the scheme will have to be provided). All Meghalaya Houses and Check Gates at all entry points into Meghalaya will be authorised to issue on the spot Temporary ID Cards to people who wish to visit Meghalaya for a short period of time. All such issuing booths will in turn be digitally linked by computer to all Block, District and the main Hub at Shillong, where all Temporary IDs so issued will be recorded and stored. Each temporary card will clearly indicate the expiry date of such card.
Temporary visitors to the state shall be issued Temporary ID Cards for a period of not more than three months only. No temporary ID Card can be renewed. Extension of stay within Meghalaya shall have to be justified and if approved a new Temporary ID card will be issued on surrender of the old card. It is also presumed that since the Card is for a temporary period of three months only, the holder shall not require prolonged rented accommodation; nor office premises; nor need to set up businesses; nor shall they need to avail of educational facilities for themselves or their families; nor shall they need to register or apply for ration cards etc. As tourists they shall only need hotel or paying guest accommodation. As labourers it shall be the responsibility of the contractor who brings them in to take care of their daily needs. Durbars, NGOs and other concerned local groups will ensure that the above are enforced. In the process no imported labourer can simply disappear into the countryside as they do now. Once his period of stay is over the holder of a Temporary ID Card will voluntarily leave on his own. No force is used. People leave on their own free will as no one without an ID card can exist in Meghalaya.
Implementing Procedure
1. The above, in essence is the concept behind the comprehensive 3 ID Card system as a control Measure against influx. This concept is based mainly on the easy availability of Online connectivity through the electronic digital systems and software. A Main server or Hub shall be installed and operate from a central office in Shillong. This main server will then be linked to secondary portals located at all district HQ, at Block HQ, at all entry points on Meghalaya’s border and to all Meghalaya houses. The Meg web site will list details of all temporary IDs inclusive of date, place and validity of issue and these details can be accessed by all interested parties especially authorized travel agents. The Meghalaya Web will advertise how Online application for ID Cards can be made. Application through such portals will be mainly for Semi Permanent and Temporary Cards only, as these do not require local durbar scrutiny for issue.
2. Local participation, and not dependence on a corruption susceptible police constabulary, shall be the working ethos of the Comprehensive 3 tier ID card system and this will ensure its effective implementation and compliance throughout all Meghalaya. It is necessary to explain how this concept of participation will work. As the possession of an ID card is compulsory for everyone, it shall be illegal for any person in the state to employ or engage a person or persons who are not in possession of a valid ID card. Any person who violates this rule will be judged as an abettor to a crime and liable to be punished under law. This will immediately bring all mine owners and contractors, who till now act with total disregard to the menace of influx, directly under the influx control mechanism. Employers of illegal migrants or people with invalid ID Cards can no longer plead ignorance. This is an important deterrent that will help check influx. Secondly, Government and the district administration will actively facilitate and encourage the durbars to maintain records of all categories of ID Card holders within their jurisdiction. Special attention of the Durbars will be given to all new residents and to the expiry date of all temporary cards within their jurisdiction. It will be impossible for anyone without a valid ID to reside anywhere within Meghalaya as the people themselves will be constantly monitoring the status of all IDs all the time. It is a fool proof mechanism towards the control of illegal immigration; prevention of clandestine residency within the state and discourage employment of labour who do not possess an ID card. There is optimism of its effective applicability throughout the NE. Those interested in maintaining the demographic harmony in Meghalaya and the NE will definitely welcome the scheme. One however cannot speak on behalf of those who wish otherwise.
3. The secret of success and viability of the 3 ID Card system lies in its inbuilt mechanism . Identity of an individual will be the key . No person without an ID can exist within Meghalaya and that is why it is called Comprehensive. All aspects of activity as a resident of Meghalaya shall depend on the Identity status of the individual. Therefore the onus of proving identity will be with the individual and not on the state. Instead of having to ferret out, chase and throw out any suspicious illegal immigrant, the person himself will voluntarily have to leave, because he just cannot survive in Meghalaya without an ID Card
Bonus Points of the
proposal
Aside from checking influx into Meghalaya the ID Cards , especially the Permanent ID Card to be issued to all genuine residents of Meghalaya, will act as Human Resource indicators of the villages and homesteads under the jurisdiction of Meghalaya. The boundaries of Meghalaya will be fenced with Humans and villages who can claim residency of the state by virtue of the ID cards they possess. The ID Cards will automatically solve the vexed boundary problem Meghalaya currently has with its neighbour Assam
The strength of the scheme is based on the following salient features:
All residents of the state shall need to possess an ID Card. Daily life activities will be linked with possession of a Card. All forms of employment, housing (tenancy, renting or boarding), education of children, ration cards, residential status, application for licenses or certificates etc will be directly linked to the possession of a card. The objective is that those without an ID card cannot survive in Meghalaya. Illegal immigrants, existing and future, will be forced to leave voluntarily. Herein lies the strength and beauty of the system. There is no need to push anyone across any border or to maintain anybody in any refugee camp.
(Concluded)