Post 2011 Census settlements across India, demographic shift under scanner of MHA formed panel

By Rajnish Singh
New Delhi [India], July 2 : Scientific study of the nature, causes and consequences of demographic changes that occurred across the country after the 2011 Census due to illegal immigration would be part of the detailed recommendations of a High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes (HLCDC), which will start its visit to bordering states very soon with a set of fixed questionnaires.
The six-member panel under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will extensively visit the bordering districts, border areas, metro cities, and industrial towns of states comprising West Bengal, Assam, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, among others and prepare a detailed assessment report.
The committee led by a retired Supreme Court judge, Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar, would start its visit soon after getting "relevant information based on a set of questionnaires prepared by it for states and UTs."
Officials said the inputs from states and Union Territories (UTs) are needed in advance to make the visit of the committee more meaningful and interactive.
They said the committee is all set to send the "detailed questionnaire" to the chief secretaries, Director Generals of Police and the departments concerned to get their response as early as possible, and that would help the team members to plan their visit to the bordering states.
The assessment report to be prepared by the high-level committee is based on the set of questionnairs readied by its members: Census Commissioner Mritunjay Kumar Narayan; retired IAS officer Durga Shanker Mishra; former IPS officer Balaji Srivastava, Director-General, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D); and Shamika Ravi, who is part of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council; and Joint Secretary (Foreigners-I) in the MHA Sandeep Namdeo Mahatme, Member Secretary of the committee.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently suggested the committee to provide its recommendation at the "earliest" as the body informed him to visit states and UTs to get first-hand ground-level details. Shah's suggestion comes after the committee met him at his residence and informed that it would collect details from the state governments and UT administrations during its visit and interact with various ministries of the Central government to receive feedback on subjects related to demographic changes.
In the courtesy meeting, the committee also informed the Home Minister that a "detailed questionnaire" has been prepared to receive relevant information from states and UTs in advance to make visits to states and UTs more meaningful and interactive.
While appreciating the strategy formed by the committee, Shah directed Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan to provide all possible assistance to the committee in its day-to-day working and also during its visits.
As announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the Red Fort on August 15, 2025, the Committee was formally constituted on May 26 this year to study the demographic changes arising from illegal immigration and other abnormal reasons, and to suggest measures to deal with these demographic changes.
This committee will scientifically assess the demographic changes occurring in various parts of the country due to illegal immigration and other abnormal reasons, analyse their causes, and recommend appropriate policy, legislative, and administrative measures.
On June 13, the Home Minister had also chaired a meeting of MHA officials to ensure proper facilitation of the Committee on Demographic Changes. He then directed the commission to study demographic changes in border districts. He also directed the Commission to visit border areas, metro cities, and industrial towns for assessment. Earlier, the first meeting of the committee was convened, and the agenda was formulated.
After constituting the committee on May 26, the MHA had also issued a 'resolution' to constitute the High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes.
As per the resolution, "extensive challenges have emerged due to demographic changes, including those linked to illegal immigration."
These changes, it says, observed in certain regions, are not attributable to normal fertility or mortality trends but are instead caused by external abnormal factors such as illegal immigration, irregular population mobility, and administrative laxity.
The resolution notes that although such changes are most visible in border districts, their impact has extended to urban centres, industrial corridors, tribal regions, and other socially and economically sensitive areas.
"These shifts have significantly affected public service delivery, local governance, resource distribution, and social cohesion," reads the resolution.
It also highlights that the existing institutional framework is not adequately equipped to undertake coordinated, evidence-based, and time-bound evaluation and response.
Constituted under the MHA, the Committee is to conduct a scientific study of the nature, causes, and consequences of demographic changes across the country and to recommend appropriate policy, administrative, and legal measures.
The resolution added that the committee may also nominate other experts or agencies as needed and consult stakeholders, including local governments, security agencies, social organisations, and academic institutions.
As per its terms of reference, the committee will examine challenges arising from demographic changes, including those due to illegal immigration, and study possible causes such as variations in fertility, cross-border movement, economic opportunities, and socio-environmental factors. It will identify underlying factors, including abnormal settlement patterns and planned migration, and analyse structural population changes at the level of religious or social communities, especially those diverging from uniform trends.
The committee will also recommend a permanent and well-organised system for the legal, fair, and time-bound identification, detention, and deportation of illegal immigrants residing in the country. It will propose mechanisms to strengthen border management, population stabilisation, and identification systems for sustained monitoring and suggest a comprehensive policy framework to enhance coordination between Central and state governments.
Additionally, the committee has the authority to requisition information, records, or documents from any ministry, department, state government, public authority, or individual. It will determine its own procedures for inquiry, consultation, analysis, and submission of its report, and may form sub-committees or working groups with prior approval of the MHA.
The MHA will provide all necessary administrative and logistical support to the committee. Its headquarters will be located in New Delhi, and it is required to submit its final report within one year.