The Center will provide ₹10 crore rice assistance to refugees in Mizoram

Myanmar nationals at the Bethel refugee camp in Zokhawthar, Mizoram. | Photo credit: Rahul Karmakar

The Center will provide rice worth ₹10 crore to support nearly 40,000 refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh and displaced people from Manipur currently sheltering in Mizoram.

The assurance came after Chief Minister Lalduhoma highlighted the humanitarian challenges the state is facing in receiving refugees and sought the Centre’s support during a meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on Friday (Jun 12, 2026), an official statement said on Saturday (Jun 13, 2026) in Aizawl.

During the meeting held at the Union Home Minister’s office, Mr. Lalduhoma informed Mr. Shah that Mizoram is currently sheltering nearly 40,000 refugees from Myanmar, Bangladesh and IDPs from Manipur.

He said that the state government was making all possible efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to the refugees and stressed the need for urgent support from the Centre, he said.

Responding to the request, Mr. Shah informed the Chief Minister that the Center would provide rice worth ₹10 crore to help in the relief efforts and help meet the food requirements of the refugees residing across the state.

Myanmar nationals and asylum seekers

More than 28,000 Myanmar nationals, mostly from Chin State, have taken refuge in Mizoram since February 2021 following a military coup in the neighboring country, while about 2,300 asylum seekers belonging to the Bawm ethnic group, one of the Mizo tribes, from Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts have fled to 2 Army against the 2 Sur ethnic group. officials said.

Besides, nearly 7,000 Kuki-Zo people of Manipur displaced by ethnic violence in May 2023 have also found refuge in Mizoram, they said.

The Chin, Bawm and Kuki-Zo people share close ethnic ties with the Mizo people.

The official statement also said that the Union Home Minister and Mizoram Chief Minister also discussed a number of development and security issues related to the border state during the meeting.

Request for funds

The Chief Minister has urged the Center to extend funds under the Security Related Expenditure (SRE) scheme to Mizoram to strengthen the government’s efforts to combat drug trafficking and cybercrime.

Mr. Lalduhoma pointed out that Mizoram was not receiving assistance, unlike other North Eastern states under the scheme, because of the peaceful security environment.

In response, Mr. Shah advised the Mizoram government to submit more project proposals under the PM-DeVINE (Prime Minister’s Initiative for Development for the North-East Region) program and ensure support in pursuing the proposals from its end, the statement added.

Published – 13 Jun 2026 22:43 IST