BENGALURU: The Chikkamagaluru police have developed a unique, first-of-its-kind portal to verify the credentials of migrant workers in the coffee capital of the state. The district, on an average, sees a footfall of around three lakh migrant workers annually. A large number of them hail from West Bengal and Assam.
“We have asked all coffee estate owners to furnish details -- government documents -- of their managers, writers and workers, especially migrant labourers, who come to work in their estates. We have built a rudimentary portal with the help of the National Informatics Centre (NIC), through which these details are checked and verified,” Superintendent of Police, Chikkamagaluru, Jitendra Kumar Dayama told The New Indian Express.
“We check whether their Aadhaar card is genuine and if it has been legally procured. We are, however, unable to verify if the Aadhaar card is illegal and has been procured illegally and have sought NIC’s help,” he added.
“In case of doubt we check the antecedents, any past criminal history of migrant workers using the National Intelligence Grid (Natgrid) and Crime and Criminal Tracking System (CCTNS). The portal was developed in July and so far, we have mapped 2,400 migrant workers.
Based on that, in August seven illegal Bangladeshis were identified and arrested. All of them were carrying genuine Aadhaar cards, which they said were issued to them with the help of agents in West Bengal on payment of Rs 2,000 each. They had fake local addresses, while parents’ names mentioned were wrong. The cards were procured illegally,” said the SP.
Police seek NIC help to verify Aadhaar validity
Superintendent of Police, Chikkamagaluru, Jitendra Kumar Dayama said that the police have sought the help of the NIC to enable them to verify if the Aadhaar cards are procured illegally. “Local people often inform the police that they suspect that some migrant workers are infiltrators, often based on their looks and language.
We had registered two FIRs on moral policing early this year, which would have escalated into communal events if preventive action was not taken. We are now using technology as a foolproof means to keep a watch. The portal needs to be integrated with Aadhar,” he added.
Chikkamagaluru district, on an average, sees an influx of around three lakh migrant workers during the two coffee seasons. A large number of workers from West Bengal and Assam are brought in to work during the coffee plucking season of March and April for Arabica, and November and December for Robusta by private contractors.