Operation Lebensraum: Illegal Migration from Bangladesh

Book excerpt: The story of human migration is as old as the story of Homo sapiens. The innate tendency to survive and achieve better living conditions has proved to be an unending process. The ethnic groups with a very high growth of population have spread out all over the world for more living space spawning unforeseen socio-economic and socio-political unrest and conflict. Most prominent in this regard have been the migration from China and Bangladesh that has continued with increasing momentum since the past several decades. Operation Lebensraum: Illegal Immigration from Bangladesh discusses the entire gamut of migration from Bangladesh into India with a focus on Assam – its origins during the colonial period and continuance during the post-Independence phase, impact, the government's failures to comprehend the nature of the problem and the ways and means to tackle the phenomenon which has already assumed an uncontrollable proportion and fuelled large scale disturbances. The book also draws a comparison of the episode with similar events around the world and especially the policies of the US government in tackling illegal migration from Mexico.