From Our Special Correspondent
GUWAHATI: Displaced Brus lodged at relief camps in Tripura are staring at an uncertain future with the Centre yet to respond to appeals by the Mizoram Bru Displaced Peoples’ Forum in regard to “closing the chapter” once and for all.
The period of the ninth and final phase of repatriation, which started from October 3, concluded on Saturday with a majority of camp inmates yet to be repatriated to Mizoram.
“There has been no response from the Centre to the letter submitted to the home ministry on November 25 last. As it is, the Mizoram Cabinet had passed a resolution not to continue repatriation of displaced Bru families after November 30, 2019. So, we will hold discussions among ourselves (NGOs) and hold public meetings in the next two to three days before chalking out a plan on the next course of action,” MBDPF general secretary, Bruno Msha told The Shillong Times over phone from Tripura on Saturday.
In the letter sent to AP Maheshwari, special secretary (internal security), Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) last Monday, the forum reiterated that the displaced Brus would not agree to repatriate to Mizoram until and unless their “small and simple demands” were met.
The forum had scaled down some “contentious” demands to settlement of just two issues. These are resettlement of migrant Brus at the Dampa Tiger Reserve and a post-repatriation development package under the ministry of DoNER, ministry of tribal welfare and ministry of minority welfare.
The Centre had suspended ration supply from October 1 triggering concerns among NGOs and camp inmates with the spectre of starvation looming and eventually prompting them to launch an agitation. Six camp inmates had lost their lives ahead of and during the road blockade staged at Kanchanpur. The Tripura government subsequently intervened and agreed to supply ration to the camp inmates till November 30.
“As of now, we have not got any signal from the Tripura government in regard to continuance of ration supply to the camps,” Msha said.
He also referred to media reports of the Tripura chief minister “stating that about 500 displaced Bru families lodged at camps in the state would be accommodated.”
“But these are just media reports and nothing is official as of now,” the MBDPF leader said.