South Asia State of Minorities Report 2019
Table 1: Major Refugee Groups in India
Group
Major location(s)
Approximate
numbers
Causes/drivers
Tibetans, from
Tibet
Bylakuppe
(Karnataka) and
Dharamshala area in
Himachal Pradesh
85,000*
External military
aggression by China
Tamils, from Sri
Lanka
Different places in
Tamil Nadu
95,230†
State repression in Sri
Lanka
Chakma and
Hajong from
the Chittagong
Hill Tracts,
Bangladesh
Different places in
Arunachal Pradesh
52,000‡
Afghans, from
Afghanistan
Delhi
15,559§
External military
interventions, by
the Soviet Union in
1988 and by the USA
in 2001; continuing
military conflict with
the Taliban
Rohingya, from
Myanmar
Jammu, Delhi,
Hyderabad, Chennai,
Jaipur and Mewat
20,833|
State repression in
Myanmar
Other UNHCRmandate
refugees
Delhi
1969
(including
asylumseekers)¶
Various reasons
Chins and
Rakhines, from
Myanmar
Mizoram
4000#
State repression in
Myanmar; crossborder links in India
Nagas, from
Myanmar
Nagaland
Unknown
State repression in
Myanmar; crossborder links in India
Ethnic Nepalis
(Lhotshampa),
from Bhutan
Sikkim, West
Bengal (Darjeeling,
Jalpaiguri, Karseong
districts)
107,923Δ
Inter-ethnic conflict
and state repression in
Bhutan
Hindus and Sikhs
from Pakistan,
Bangladesh and
Afghanistan
Across India, mainly
in border states and
in Delhi
No reliable
estimates
Religious persecution
Development-induced
displacement and
religious persecution
*
According to a 2018 survey by the Tibetan Central Administration. See: Rahul Tripathi, 'Tibetan Refugees
down from 1.5 Lakh to 85,000 in 7 Years,' The Indian Express, September 10, 2018, https://indianexpress.
com/article/india/tibetan-refugees-down-from-1-5-lakh-to-85000-in-7-years-5349587/.
†
Refugees and asylum seekers registered under the UNHCR’s mandate, as of August 2019. See: ‘Figures at
36
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