Settlement Of Mizoram Bru Refugees In Tripura Has Started:
The process of settlement of Mizoram Bru refugees in Tripura has started.
- It is in accordance with a quadripartite accord signed in New Delhi in January 2020.
- Bru or Reang is a community indigenous to Northeast India, living mostly in Tripura, Mizoram and Assam. In Tripura, they are recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group.
- In Mizoram, they have been targeted by groups that do not consider them indigenous to the state.
- In 1997, following ethnic clashes, nearly 37,000 Brus fled the Mamit, Kolasib, and Lunglei districts of Mizoram and were accommodated in relief camps in Tripura.
- Since then, 5,000 have returned to Mizoram in eight phases of repatriation, while 32,000 still live in six relief camps in North Tripura.
- In June 2018, community leaders from the Bru camps signed an agreement with the Centre and the two-state governments, providing for repatriation in Mizoram. But most camp residents rejected the terms of the agreement.
- The camp residents said that the agreement didn’t guarantee their safety in Mizoram.
Quadripartite Accord:
- The Centre, the governments of Mizoram and Tripura, and leaders of Bru organisations signed a quadripartite agreement in January (2020).
- Under the pact, the Home Ministry has committed to incur the whole expenditure of settlement in Tripura.
- A package was assured in the accord that each refugee family would get:
- A plot, fixed deposit of Rs. 4 lakh, free ration, and a monthly stipend of Rs. 5,000 for two years.
- In addition, each family will also be provided Rs. 1.5 lakh to construct a house.
