Kerala government stops NPR process after West Bengal, claims 'apprehension among public'

After the West Bengal government, the LDF-led Kerala government on Friday has stalled the National Population Register (NPR) process. The order passed by the state government stated that it had stalled the process in the wake of the apprehension among the public about NPR leading to the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the wake of the amended Citizenship Act. The Centre has stated that the CAA cannot be stalled by states as it comes under the Union government but has assured that nation-wide NRC has not been implemented yet.

Kerala govt stalls NPR

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Mamata govt stalls NPR 

Earlier on Monday, the West Bengal government stayed the preparation/updation of the National population register (NPR) process in the state. The government had issued a directive to the Census cell stating that no census activities will be taken up without clearance from the West Bengal government. The government stated that this directive has been issued to maintain public order.

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What is National population register?

The NPR documents all the usual residents of the country and is prepared at the local, sub-District, District, State and National level under provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955. Any resident who has resided in a local area for the past 6 months or more, or intends to do the same has to mandatorily register in the NPR. The NPR will contain demographic and biometric details and will be prepared by September 2020. The NPR was first prepared in 2010 and updated in 2015. Meanwhile, the census department is currently gearing for the next census count (which is undertaken once in a decade) in  2021.

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Anti-CAA protests

The protests against CAA which began in Assam has now spread throughout the country. Violent protests have been witnessed in Assam where 4 people have died, West Bengal where numerous public property damaged and internet snapped in places, Delhi where buses were burnt and Jamia Millia students were attacked by Delhi police and currently thousands are protesting at Jamia Masjid. Hundreds have been detained in all these states. Moreover, violent protests have been witnessed in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka where a mob of protestors have attacked police, pelted stones and set ablaze several buses. Two have died in Mangaluru and five in Uttar Pradesh during these protests.

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