No decision on countrywide NRC yet, govt tells Lok Sabha

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 30

Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai today informed the Lok Sabha that the government had not taken any decision yet to prepare a nationwide National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Rai also said that The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), was notified on December 12, 2019, and had come into force on January 10, 2020. He said the people covered under the CAA may apply for citizenship after the rules were notified.

In a written reply to a question, he said, “Till now, the government has not taken any decision to prepare National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC) at the national level.”

As far as Assam was concerned, the minister said, hard copies of the supplementary list of inclusions and online family-wise list of exclusions in the NRC had been published on August 31, 2019, following directions from the Supreme Court.

Rai also said 4,177 persons were granted Indian citizenship during the last five years against 10,645 applications that were received. Among those who applied for citizenship, 227 were from the US, 7,782 from Pakistan, 795 from Afghanistan and 184 from Bangladesh. He said 1,106 applicants were given citizenship in 2016, 817 in 2017, 628 in 2018, 987 in 2019 and 639 in 2020.

The minister also said over 6 lakh Indians had given up their citizenship in the last five years. He said 1,33,049 Indians gave up Indian citizenship in 2017, 1,34,561 in 2018, 1,44,017 in 2019, 85,248 in 2020 and 1,11,287 till September 30, 2021.

He said as per information available with the Ministry of External Affairs, a total number of 1,33,83,718 Indian nationals were living in foreign countries.