GUWAHATI: The Mizoram Bru Displaced Peoples’ Forum has expressed satisfaction with the Centre’s decision to extend ration supply and cash doles to the displaced people from the Bru community currently housed in camps of north Tripura to March this year.
The process of ration supply and relief for the inmates has since last year been interrupted after it was first discontinued on October 1, 2018 only to be reinstated after three weeks following intervention by the Tripura government.
Cash doles were however discontinued for three camps in November, 2018 and another three camps in the subsequent month.
Ration supply, forum sources said, was again stopped on January 15 this year but has again been reinstated and extended to March 31, 2019 following a request to the Centre.
A delegation of the forum had met central ministers and representatives in New Delhi to meet central government representatives on the issue.
“But now we are happy that the Centre has positively responded to our memorandum requesting continuation of ration supply and cash doles to the inmates of the relief camps till the repatriation and rehabilitation was completed,” Bruno Msha, the general secretary of the forum told The Shillong Times on Thursday.
Over 32,000 people and 5000 families are currently living at six camps in North Tripura.
The forum, as a partner in a quadrilateral agreement (between the Centre, Tripura and Mizoram governments) signed on July 3 last year, has been pressing for implementation of the repatriation process since the inception of the agreement.
The forum had on Wednesday met Mizoram chief minister, Zoramthanga in New Delhi who has assured that the issue of repatriation and rehabilitation of the over 32,000 displaced Brus would be discussed subsequently.
“The MNF government has resumed office only recently and the chief minister has said that he would discuss the matter with his ministers,” Msha said.
Besides, he said there were certain measures under the agreement that remain incomplete. “They include official meetings with the newly-formed MNF government, issuance of new ration cards to previously left-out families, identification of displaced families, update of electoral rolls besides resettlement, among others,” he added.
“So, given that we have a new government coupled with the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, we presume that the repatriation and rehabilitation process might go beyond March this year even as we are hopeful that it is completed by then,” Msha said.