NEW DELHI: The final draft of Assam 's National Register of Citizens (NRC) was released on Monday. It said 2.89 crore of 3.29 crore who applied are considered citizens of the country. That means some 40-41 lakh of Assamese have technically stopped being 'Indian'. The NRC coordinator, Sailesh, who released the final draft, emphasised that "this is just a draft, and not the final list.The people who are not included can make claims and objections".

"The process for making claims and objections will begin on August 30 and continue till September 28. Adequate and ample scope will be given to people for making objections. No genuine Indian citizen should have any fear," said Sailesh.

The border state of Assam has faced an influx of people from Bangladesh and other parts of the country at various times in the past and 'illegal immigrants' have been an emotive and political issue in a state highly divided along religious lines. Here's a comprehensive guide to understand what's at stake for Assam's people with regards to the NRC final draft :

- Assam is the only state in the country to have a register of its citizens. The reason: the issue of illegal migration from Bangladesh, a Muslim country, is a hot button topic, with some groups claiming they are voting illegally and changing the demographic of the state.

- To get their names included in the register, Assamese had to produce documents that proved their family resided in Assam before March 24, 1971, that is, from a day before the Bangladesh Liberation War began. The war ended December 16, 1971, after which Bangladesh was officially born.

- However, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared Bangladesh an independent country on March 26 of that year, when residents of what was then east Pakistan began the guerrilla struggle against West Pakistan. It is in this scenario that the NRC's cutoff date and time - midnight March 24, 1971 - is significant.

- The first NRC was prepared in 1951, after that year's Census, when Assam's population was 80 lakh. The NRC of 1951 is being updated for Assam in accordance with the 2005 tripartite agreement among the state government, the Centre and the influential All Assam Students Union (AASU). The agreement was part of the process for implementing the 1985 Assam Accord.

-The updating of the NRC began then, in fits and starts, but then stopped after violence broke out in several parts of the state. Then in 2009, Assam Public Works (APW), an NGO, filed a plea in the Supreme Court (SC) for the identification of what it said were foreigners - Bangladeshi, specifically - in the state. That's when the SC got involved and a fresh count for an updated NRC began; it was a three-year process.

-After the process began, as many as 3.29 crore people submitted documents to prove their citizenship. The first draft of the NRC, which was published in December last year, listed 1.9 crore people.

-Monday's final draft - earlier scheduled to be released June 30 - listed list the names of the remaining citizens. So of 3.29 who applied, 2.89 crore are considered citizens and 41 lakh aren't.

- The BJP's Himanta Biswa Sarma , who oversees the NRC project, has said in the past that those whose names don't make it to the list will be deported.

-However, Assam chief minister (CM) Sarbananda Sonowal told TOI on Sunday that "no one will be treated as a foreigner if his or her name does not appear in the NRC draft" and that anyone whose name doesn't feature on the final list will have "ample opportunity" to prove their eligibility for inclusion in the final NRC through claims and objections.

-Sonowal further told TOI that The NRC is the "biggest safeguard" for Assam and its people, assuring that genuine citizens who do not make it to the draft will be able to seek legal redress in multiple stages right up to the SC.

-Still, Assam is tense, very tense, on Monday. The Army is on standby, over 22,000 paramilitary troops have been sent to Assam and adjoining states, the state police is on alert and leaves of all state government employees have been cancelled. Facebook and Google are backing Assam's bid to counter the 'anti-NRC' campaigns.

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In Video: Assam final NRC draft: Almost 41 lakh deprived of Indian citizenship