AGARTALA, June 5 - Union Government wants to resume repatriation of Bru refugees sheltered in six relief camps of North Tripura district by November itself, official sources said here on Sunday.
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Joint Secretary Satyajit Garg, who visited Ashapara and Naisingpara refugee camps on Saturday, conveyed the Central Government�s �message� to the refugees.
Besides passing the strong message to the refugees, Garg also held meeting with the refugee leaders at Naisingpara camp to know their mind. During the meeting, refugee leaders under the banner of Mizoram Bru Displaced People�s Forum (MBDPF) handed over a memorandum to the MHA official.
Their major demands include allotment of five acres of land to each family after repatrition, hike in the outlay of housing scheme and cluster wise rehabilitation. In the meeting, the refugee leaders also took up the issue of plight of Bru people after return to their homeland. Refugee leaders pointed out repatriated families are not happy after the resettlement in Mizoram.
When contacted, District Magistrate North district Dr Sandeep Mahatme said the Union Government is serious about resumption of Bru refugee repatriation. �The Centre wants to resume repatriation of Bru refugees by November and this will be the last attempt to resolve the vexed problem�, the DM, who accompanied the MHA official, said.
�It seems Mizoram Government is also keen to take back their people as early as possible�, he said adding that long presence of refugees has already created a major problem in Tripura. On being asked about the demands of refugees, Dr Mahatme said, �There are so many demands of the refugees, but all demands can�t be fulfilled as the government will have to handle the issue as per the existing guideline.�
DIG (CID) KV Srijesh was present during the MHA official�s visit while Principal Secretary (Home) Mizoram Government, Ms Renu Sharma also attended the meeting.
