Information on these subjects, other than that provided below, could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.

According to sources, approximately 80 per cent of India's population is Hindu, 14.4 per cent Muslim (Europa 1994, OAA Feb. 1995, 2, RIAS June 1994, 11) 2.4 per cent Christian, 2 per cent Sikh, 0.7 per cent Buddhist, 0.5 per cent Jain and 0.4 per cent others (ibid. June 1994, 11; OAA Feb. 1995, 2).

It is stated in India: Comments on Country Conditions and Asylum Claims, which is published by the United States' Office of Asylum Affairs (OAA), that to "escape violence in Punjab, many residents, both Sikhs and Hindus, have established residences in other parts of India where they are able to pursue their lives without interference by the police or by Sikh terrorist organizations" (Feb. 1995, 6). Page 14 of this attachment provides the OAA assessment of Hindu and Muslim asylum claims in the Unites States.

Response to Information Request IND16887.E of 17 March 1994, available at Regional Documentation Centres, provides information on the treatment of Punjabi-speaking non-Sikhs outside the Punjab.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

The Europa World Year Book 1994. 1994. 34th ed. Vol. 1. London: Europa Publications.

Office of Asylum Affairs (OAA), Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, United States. February 1995. India: Comments on Country Conditions and Asylum Claims. Washington, DC: United States Department of State.

Refugees, Immigrants and Asylum Section (RIAS), Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia. June 1994. Country Profile: India. Parkes, ACT: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Attachments

Office of Asylum Affairs (OAA), Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, United States. February 1995. India: Comments on Country Conditions and Asylum Claims. Washington, DC: United States Department of State, pp. 6, 14.

Additional Sources Consulted

Amnesty International Reports. Yearly. 1993, 1994.

Asian Survey [Berkeley, Calif.]. Monthly. 1993 to present.

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. Yearly. 1993, 1994.

Critique: Review of the Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. Yearly. 1992, 1993.

Documentation, Information and Research Branch (DIRB), Immigration and Refugee Board [Ottawa]. March 1995. India: Chronology of Events: February 1991-November 1994.

_____. September 1994. Contextual Information Package: India.

DIRB Indexed Media Review [Ottawa]. Weekly. February to June 1992; July 1994 to present.

DIRB "India" country file. January 1995 to present.

Encylopedia of the Third World. 1992.

The Europa World Year Book. Yearly. 1993.

Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports. January 1995 to present.

Human Rights in Developing Countries Yearbook. Yearly. 1993, 1994.

Human Rights Watch World Report. Yearly. 1993, 1994, 1995.

Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB), Refugee Division. 24 August 1994. "Update on the Punjab and Human Rights in India." (transcript of Professional Development Session held in Vancouver, BC on 24 August 1994 and given by Professor Paul Brass, department of political science, University of Washington at Seattle, and Farhad Karim, Asia Watch).

India Today [Delhi]. Weekly. September 1994 to present.

Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. Monthly. 1992 to present.

News from Asia Watch. 1992 to present.

Office of Asylum Affairs (OAA), Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. December 1994. India: Comments on Country Conditions and Asylum Claims.

Political Handbook of the World. Yearly. 1992, 1994-1995.

World Directory of Minorities. 1991.

On-line of media sources.

Oral sources.
Note on oral sources:

Oral sources are usually contacted when documentary sources have been exhausted. However, oral sources must agree to be quoted in a publicly available Response to Information Request. If they refuse, the Response will read "no information currently available." Contacting oral sources is also subject to time constraints; for example, there are periods of the year when academics are unavailable.