What is the India-Myanmar border Free Movement Regime?

Context: In February 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced its decision to scrap the Free Movement Regime (FMR) between India and Myanmar. However, the formal orders on ending FMR are still awaited. 

Background:

• India and Myanmar share a largely unfenced 1,643 km border, which goes through the states of Manipur, Mizoram, Assam, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
• February 2024: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced the scrapping of the Free Movement Regime (FMR) between India and Myanmar.
  • FMR was being scrapped to ensure the internal security of the country and to maintain the demographic structure of India’s northeastern States. 
  • MHA also announced that a fence will be constructed along the entire border. 
  • However, these were verbal announcements on ending FMR and formal orders are still awaited. 
• December 2024: MHA has released new guidelines “Instructions for regulation of cross-border movement of people of border area across the Indo-Myanmar Border (IMB)” to introduce stricter regulations such as reducing the range of free movement from the earlier 16 km to the present 10 km.

What is the Free Movement Regime?

• The Free Movement Regime along the India-Myanmar border came into existence in 1968 shaped by the deep ethnic and familial connections between residents of India and Myanmar’s Chin state.
  • The Mizo, Kuki, and Chins, collectively known as Zo people (on either side of the border) share a common ancestry and robust ethnic ties. 
  • The border between India and Myanmar was demarcated by the British in 1826 which resulted in the dispersion of Zo people across international boundaries.
• Earlier, the territorial limit of free movement along the borders was 40 km, which was reduced to 16 km in 2004, and additional regulations were enforced in 2016.

What are the New Guidelines?

• Recently, the Ministry of Home Affairs has brought in fresh protocol to regulate the movement of people living within 10 kilometres on either side of the largely unfenced international border.
• According to the new guidelines, a resident crossing the border from India to Myanmar will be given a “border pass” by the Assam Rifles for stay up to seven days in the neighbouring country.
  • The Assam Rifles is the primary border guarding force along the India-Myanmar Border.
• For entry into India from Myanmar, individuals will have to report at the designated border crossing points and fill a form.
  • The Assam Rifles will conduct the document inspection followed by a security and health check by the State police and health department officials, respectively. 
  • The Assam Rifles will upload all the forms on the Indo-Myanmar Border portal, record biometrics and issue a border pass with a photograph of the applicant and a QR code. 
  • The pass will have to be deposited on return at the same crossing point before completion of seven days. The same process will be followed for Indians who want to visit Myanmar.
• The police will do physical checks to verify the visit of Myanmar nationals as per the details provided in the border pass and anyone violating the conditions will face legal action.

Challenges in implementing FMR:

• The implementation of the FMR was never robust, as there are no standard documents or border pass recognised by both the countries. 
• Some Indian states (Nagaland and Mizoram) and civil society groups have opposed the scrapping of FMR. 

Also Read: India-Myanmar Border Issues 

Given the interests of the local population, neither the complete removal of the FMR nor full fencing of the border may be desirable as livelihoods will be impacted, and essential travel for health care and education may be hit. However, the reconsideration of the FMR is grounded in the unsettling realities of insurgencies, smuggling, the drug trade, and the increased influx of Myanmar nationals following the 2021 coup.