Union Home Minister briefs media on the implementation of Bezbaruah Committee Shri Rajnath Singh says amendments to IPC under consideration

Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh briefed media on the implementation of M.P. Bezbaruah Committee Report here today. He said that the recommendations made by the Committee with regard to immediate measures have been accepted.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had constituted a Committee in February 2014 under the chairmanship of Shri M.P. Bezbaruah to look into the various concerns of the citizens hailing from the North Eastern States who are living in different parts of the country and to suggest suitable remedial measures including legal measures which could be taken up by the Government. 

As part of the Legal Measures, Shri Rajnath Singh said the Indian Penal Code (IPC) will be amended for insertion of new sections of 153C and 509A as recommended by the Committee.  The Ministry of Law & Justice has agreed to the amendment.

As part of Legal Assistance, the Home Minister said a panel of seven lawyers including five women lawyers has been constituted by the Delhi State Legal Service Authority (DSLSA) for providing legal assistance to the needy people from the North East.  The Delhi Government will also be providing compensation and monetary assistance to the NE people under Delhi Victim Compensation Scheme 2011.  State Bhawans of concerned NE States have also agreed to play active roles to assist the persons in distress.

Shri Rajnath Singh further said that all the recommendations made by the Committee regarding Special Police Initiatives and additional steps to be taken by the various State Police Forces and Delhi Police have been accepted for immediate implementation. These include:

·        Delhi police will recruit 20 police personnel, (10 male – 10 female) each from North East States.

·        Police exchange programme has been approved between NE States and metropolitan cities including Delhi. 

·        North East Special Unit at New Delhi is activated to address the grievances of the NE people. Other States have been advised to do the same.

·        A decision has been taken that cases of NE people be referred to the existing fast track courts for early decision.

·        A special helpline No.1093 for NE people is being synchronized with helpline No.100. Other States are advised to set up special helpline.

·        Various Metropolitan Police including Delhi Police are being advised to post NE Personnel in their force in the visible positions in vulnerable areas prone to crime against NE people. Also they will be advised to have due representation of the senior officers at the field level.

The Union Home Minister said some recommendations relate to the Ministry of Human Resource Development and several steps have already been initiated in this regard including:

·        In order to educate the people about the North East, Universities have been advised that history of North East and participation in the freedom movement of the country should be taught at graduation level  and post graduation level, and for this purpose, curriculum be changed. 

·        Similar action is being taken by the NCERT with respect to elementary and higher secondary education. 

·        A special scholarship scheme for students of North East Region ‘Ishan Uday’ has been launched from the academic session 2014-15 providing 10,000 scholarships ranging from Rs.3,500/- to Rs.5,000/- per month for studying at under-graduate level in colleges  and universities of the country.  

·        Under ‘Ishan Vikas’ scheme, selected students from school and college levels from the North Eastern States will be taken to Indian Institute of Technology (IITs), National Institute of Technology (NITs) and other engineering institutes for exposure/internship programme.

Shri Rajnath Singh said the Ministries of Culture, Tourism, Information & Broadcasting have also planned to roll out prorgammes for bridging the gap between the peoples of the North-Eastern Region and the rest of the country, including:

·        Chalking out action plan for educating the people about the rich cultural heritage of the North Eastern States and its wider coverage & promotion at the national level.

·        The  North East Film Festival & North East Festival to be organized annually at New Delhi, showcasing culture, films, foods, sports etc.

Besides, the Ministry of Sports has also been roped in this endeavour:

·        Has committed itself for identification of talented sports persons from North East with the help of State Governments for arranging their training in reputed sports training centres. 

·        Sports Ministry is taking action for organizing Sports Tournaments/Events in the North Eastern States.

·        An amount of Rs.100 crore has been earmarked for setting up of National Sports University in Manipur.

Shri Rajnath Singh said the Ministry of DoNER being the nodal agency for development of the remote region has also initiated the following steps:

·        DONER Ministry is in the process of clearing the proposal for construction of a hostel at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and four other colleges at Delhi expeditiously.

·        DONER is also exploring the effective measures to deal with the problem of accommodation and high rent faced by the students and professionals/service persons from the North East in Delhi.

·        Govt. of Delhi is being advised to initiate measures to resolve the problem, of less payment/non-payment of wages being faced by the North Eastern People.