Bru rehabilitation triggers tension in North Tripura

Guwahati, Nov 18: Normal life was brought to a halt in northern Tripura's Kanchanpur sub-division for the third consecutive day today even as tensions was running high in the area in the wake of the Joint Movement Committee calling for indefinite shutdown to protest the government's decision to rehabilitate thousands of tribal refugees, who had fled to adjoining Mizoram 23 years ago following ethnic strife in the state.

Police said the situation in the sub-division with a mixed population turned for the worse after a few tribal refugees attacked the 36 houses of non-tribal people last evening forcing over 110 people to flee to safer places.

A large contingent of security forces comprising the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Tripura State Rifles (TSR) has been deployed to deal with the situation.


Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb said in Agartala that the process of rehabilitation of the tribal refugees was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic but the Centre and the state government are committed to settle these migrants in Tripura.

An agreement was signed in January this year to end the 23-year-old crisis by rehabilitating over 34,000 refugees, from 5,400 families of the Reang community, locally called "Bru". They would be settled in different places in Tripura, including Kanchanpur, where they had migrated in 1997 from Mizoram following ethnic conflict.

The agreement was signed by the Chief Secretaries of Mizoram, Tripura and the representatives of the refugees in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

As per the agreement, which came after the Tripura Chief Minister had in November last year agreed to accept the tribal refugees, the Reangs will settle in Tripura and will be given financial aid for their rehabilitation. They will also be included as voters in Tripura as per the agreement.

The Centre has announced a package of Rs 600 crore for the settlement of these tribals, recognised as a primitive tribe in Tripura.