The Rohingya refugee crisis is starting to have its crippling effect across the Indian sub-continent. Refugees are continuing to pour into Bangladesh which is struggling with the crisis. Rohingya residents – a stateless, mostly Muslim minority in Buddhist-majority Myanmar – say the military and Rakhine Buddhists are waging a brutal campaign against them, burning their villages. There is growing fear that many of them will try to illegally enter into North East region through the porous boundary. Already unconfirmed report of Rohingya refugees entering Mizoram has emerged. Though there is immense sympathy for the plight of refugees, but, there is no denying that North East India is simply not ready to accommodate more refugees.
Many of the Bangladeshi Hindu and Buddhist refugees along with Tibetan refugee have made state like Assam, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Arunachal as their home. There is growing conflict between refugees and indigenous population. In Arunachal the local tribals are increasingly feeling threatened by Chakma-Hajong and Tibetan refugees. Therefore it is best to put pressure on Myanmarese government to stop the ethnic cleansing of Rohingya. India should have taken lead role in pressurizing Myanmar’s Nobel Peace Prize winning Aung San Suu Kyi, the nation’s state counsellor and de facto leader to stop the genocide. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his recent visit to Myanmar refused to speak out and has instead offered his support to her. Modi should understand that ultimately in the long run India will suffer as many of the Rohingya’s will definitely illegally enter into India.