Agartala: CPI-M’s Tripura state committee on Monday launched a year long centenary celebration of founder member of Janashikhsha (public education) movement in the state in 1945 and former chief minister Dasarath Deb.
To commemorate the contribution of Deb in spreading education in remote tribal areas during the royal regime and integration of communist movement in Tripura before independence, the party offices organised public lecture and seminars in all 244 CPI-M local commi-ttees, 23 sub-divisional committees and 8 district committees.
In the central programme at Agartala, both party state secretary Bijan Dhar and Chief Minister Manik Sarkar called upon fellow comrades to pursue the ideal of Mr Deb in fighting against imperialists and communal forces for holistic development.
“Dasarath Deb had been fighting against royal rulers and zamindari system to ensure equal right of education and basic needs of the backward tribals of Tripura even before funda-mental rights of the citizen were not established,” said Dhar.
He said that tribal development activities in Tripura had been started with Janashikhsha move-ment and political rights of the tribal communities had become a reality in 1982 when the Left Front govern-ment established the Tripu-ra tribal areas autonomous district council, followed by integrated development plan for tribals.
Dhar said Dasaratha Deb made immense contribution in restoration of land rights of the tribals, movement for food and language and civil rights for the tribal communities in post independence era.
“Dasaratha Deb had a brilliant academic record including 1st class in matric and graduation in Bangladesh and post graduation in Calcutta University in 1945 by which in those days he could have got a good job anywhere in the country but he did not. He returned to Tripura and established 488 schools in tribal areas against the decision of the then royal rulers to educate the oppressed tribals,” said Chief Minister Sarkar.
In 1950 Deb had joined the undivided Communist Party and in 1951 was elected as first party secretary in Tripura. In 1952 he was elected as MP from Tripura. During 1988-1993 when Congress-TUJS combine came to power in the state he was the party secretary and 1993 he became the chief minister.
In the 2nd LF government in 1977 he was deputy chief minister in the Nripen Chakraborty cabinet. Dasaratha Deb died in 1998 and Manik Sarkar became the chief minister. (UNI)
