The Karnataka government is planning to expand the detention centre in Bengaluru’s Nelamangala meant to house undocumented immigrants, as it has reached capacity. Karnataka Director General and Inspector General of Police Praveen Sood sought the expansion of the centre to increase the capacity of the detention centre, which provides temporary accommodation to illegal and undocumented foreign immigrants.
“Presently, a detention centre has been operating near Nelamangala but there is a lack of space,” Praveen Sood said. Karnataka Home Minister Araga Jnanendra has asked the Social Welfare Department to provide funding for expanding the capacity of the current detention centre. “Immigrants from other countries, including illegal Bangladeshi citizens, should be arrested in accordance with the law and not be sent to jail; instead, they should be housed in a detention centre, and immediate action must be taken,” he said.
The Home Minister added, “The illegal immigrants who are staying in the country even after their visas have expired are at risk of engaging in anti-national activities and they must be deported back to their country.”
Addressing the media, Karnataka’s Minister of Social Welfare Department and Backward Classes Welfare, Kota Srinivas Poojary, said, “The proposal issued by the Home Ministry will be considered on priority.”
The state's first detention centre is located in Sondekoppa village near Nelamangala in Bengaluru Rural district. TNM had visited the detention centre in 2020 and discovered that it has six rooms for illegal immigrants, as well as a common kitchen and bathroom, and barbed wire runs along the compound walls on all four sides. The centre also has two watchtowers on each corner, as well as a security room at the entrance.