Tripura: Rain stalls construction of Bru resettlement in Kalalaogang

While Tripura’s Kalalaogang once had no human presence, now the region is full of small bamboo-made huts and dormitory-like barracks.

The area will house as many as 633 families who are among the 34,000 internally displaced Bru migrants being given permanent citizenship of Tripura. 

As construction work is under way, rain in the last few days has impacted the construction work with many Bru families having to return to the relief camps based out of the Kanchanpur subdivision in North Tripura district as the plot distribution process got delayed.

However, many families are staying there to look after the construction work and keep the communication channels open with the local administration. Interestingly, some have also established shops on the main road connecting their settlement as a means of livelihood.

Speaking to ANI, the secretary of the settlement working committee, Remkho Reang said that two to three months may be required for completion of plot distribution. He said, “As per the records 633 families are supposed to get resettlement here. However, they had returned to the respective relief camps as the process may face delays because of the rain. The land leveling work is under progress in full swing but once the rains come the construction works are put on hold. We hope within the next two to three months the plot distribution among families will be completed.”

According to the leader, as per the Rs 600 crore quadripartite agreement, the families had received the first installment which is Rs 50,000 for the construction of houses apart from Rs 4 lakh as fixed deposit certificates and Rs 5,000 monthly cash assistance.

"We have received 50,000 as the first instalment of the house construction. Once we start building the house, we shall get the remaining one lakh rupees in two instalments. The monthly cash assistance of Rs 5,000 is also started. In addition, the fixed deposit certificates are also delivered,” he added.

Meanwhile, he thanked Chief Minister Manik Saha, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the initiatives.

It may be noted that the IDP Brus took shelter in six relief camps of Tripura in the 1997 after ethnic clashes broke out in neighbouring Mizoram.

In 2020, the Government of Tripura, the Government of India, the Government of Mizoram, and Bru leaders signed the quadripartite agreement to solve the issue after which Brus became eligible to be called citizens of Tripura.

In the previous three Lok Sabha polls (2009, 2014 and 2019), the Bru migrants voted as voters of Mizoram.