New Delhi [India], June 13 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday chaired a meeting of Ministry of Home Affairs officials to ensure proper facilitation of the High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes (HLCDC).
To assess changes in demography, the Committee will also visit metropolitan areas and industrial towns. The first meeting of the High-Level Committee has already been convened, and the agenda has been formulated, the Ministry stated.
The Ministry will provide logistical and other necessary support for the proper functioning of the Committee.
As announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the Red Fort on 15th Aug 2025, the Committee was formally constituted on 26th May 2026. The Committee, headed by Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar, will study demographic changes, especially in border areas.
Earlier last month, the MHA issued a 'resolution' to constitute a High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes (HLCDC) to address challenges arising from demographic shifts observed across the country, hours after Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the formation of the committee on his official X handle.
As per the resolution, "extensive challenges have emerged due to demographic changes, including those linked to illegal immigration."
The MHA stated that the committee may also nominate other experts or agencies as needed and consult stakeholders, including local governments, security agencies, social organisations, and academic institutions.
As per its terms of reference, the committee will examine challenges arising from demographic changes, including those due to illegal immigration, and study possible causes such as variations in fertility, cross-border movement, economic opportunities, and socio-environmental factors. It will identify underlying factors, including abnormal settlement patterns and planned migration, and analyse structural population changes at the level of religious or social communities, especially those diverging from uniform trends.
The committee will also recommend a permanent and well-organised system for the legal, fair, and time-bound identification, detention, and deportation of illegal immigrants residing in the country. It will propose mechanisms to strengthen border management, population stabilisation, and identification systems for sustained monitoring, and suggest a comprehensive policy framework to enhance coordination between the Central and state governments.
Additionally, the committee has the authority to requisition information, records, or documents from any Ministry, Department, State Government, public authority, or individual. It will determine its own procedures for inquiry, consultation, analysis, and submission of its report, and may form sub-committees or working groups with prior approval of the MHA.
The MHA will provide all necessary administrative and logistical support to the committee. Its headquarters will be located in New Delhi, and it is required to submit its final report within one year.
The order further states that a copy of the resolution will be communicated to the Chairman and members of the committee and will be published in the Gazette of India for general information.