The Himachal Pradesh Government has requested the Central Government to make photo identity cards mandatory for 23,000 Tibetan refugees and 25,000 Nepalese who reside in the state to earn living as porters, construction workers and orchard labourers.

At the Chief Ministers’ conference on internal security in New Delhi, held on Thursday, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh asked for this special provision in order to maintain law and order in the state. “Although the state police, CID and intelligence agencies keep a close vigil on the activities of foreign nationals residing in the state, including Tibetans and Nepalese, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of External Affairs should take initiatives to introduce photo identity cards,” he said.

There have not been several incidents of violence involving Nepalese and Tibetans, except for a few cases of murder and theft by Nepalese who, after committing such crimes, usually flee to Nepal. The movement of Tibetans in and out of Dharamsala, the headquarter of the Tibetan Government-in-exile, has been a cause for concern in the state — particularly in the context of the security of the Dalai Lama. Tibetan followers of Shugden sect had arrived in Dharamsala in September, which was seen as a security threat to the Dalai Lama. It was only after a local Tibetan youth identified and informed the police that they were traced and asked to leave.

At the conference, the CM also talked about the state being the first one to implement Common Integrated Police Application Programme (CIPA) in all police stations by March 31, 2008. He said that so far the programme has been implemented in 65 police stations and the remaining 35 will be covered in the present financial year. On 35 check posts in Chamba district — where Himachal Pradesh shares border with Jammu and Kashmir — the state has deployed eight companies of armed police and one battalion of the ITBP to check infiltration of terrorists from Jammu and Kashmir. The CM asked the Centre to sanction one more battalion of IRB on the inter-state border.