Friday, April 15 2005 16:06 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Alarmed by rising illegal immigration into Northeast India from Bangladesh, Chief Ministers of five States of the region have asked the Centre to increase security along the international borders and help them strengthen their police forces.

They also demanded that the region's insurgency problems be treated as a "national issue as in the case of Kashmir" so that these could be solved quickly.

"Steps have been taken to ensure that the demographic structure of the Northeast is kept intact. The Centre should strengthen the presence of Border Security Force along the borders with Bangladesh," Meghalaya Chief Minister D D said in a press conference in New Delhi yesterday (Apr 14, 2005) evening.

"They should enhance its manpower and modernise its mechanism for checking immigration. We also expect financial support for modernising our police forces," he added.

He was joined by Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Gegong Apang, Manipur CM O Ibobi Singh, Mizoram CM Zoramthanga and Nagaland CM Neiphiu Rio.

The leaders, who came to the capital for the Chief Minister's Conference on Internal Security and Law and Order, also held discussions earlier with Assam CM Tarun Gogoi and Tripura CM Manik Sarkar, Lapang said.

Asked whether Northeastern States were in favour of a unified command structure, as suggested by the Centre, Lapang said "We will discuss about it once we get the blueprint of the proposal. We will evaluate it with an open mind."