Rohingya families began to dismantle their houses and pack their belongings in Jammu after authorities issued notices to plot owners directing them to remove slums and shops from their land, amid a fresh crackdown on Rohingya settlements across the Union Territory.
The action comes from the Narwal area, where the residents started to remove their temporary structure on Tuesday, and they have continued their exercise on Wednesday. The visuals that were circulated on the internet showed them pulling down their huts, packing their belongings, and preparing to leave.
“It’s a good step that the administration has taken. The house & plot owners have been asked to evict Rohingya. This should have been done much earlier,” former Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police SP Vaid said.
However, it is still not clear where the families will go after leaving the plot. India Today has highlighted that sources said a close watch is being made on the movement of the Rohingya.
The land was used by Rohingya families for residential and commercial structures. The owners of the land, by authorities, were asked to remove the slums and shops.
Following the issuance of the notices, families living in the affected structures have started dismantling their huts and shifting their belongings.
The development comes amid increased official scrutiny of Rohingya settlements in Jammu and Kashmir.
As part of its ongoing assessment of demographic changes, a government-appointed High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes recently visited Jammu and inspected a Rohingya settlement in the Narwal area. The committee’s field visit focused on demographic changes and related issues.
According to government data presented before the committee in August, a total of 7,656 Rohingya had been identified across Jammu and Kashmir.
Of these, 6,737 were identified in the 10 districts of the Jammu region, while 919 were identified across the 10 districts of the Kashmir Valley.
The figures also recorded 504 Bangladeshi nationals across the Union Territory. While 46 had been identified in the Jammu region, the Kashmir Valley accounted for 458.
The committee was also provided details of cases registered against foreign nationals. The Jammu region recorded 101 such cases involving 179 men and 21 women. In the Kashmir Valley, 16 cases involving 41 women and four men were recorded.
