On January, 16 ,2020, Union Minister for Home Affairs (HM), Shri Amit Shah has presided over the signing of a quadripartite agreement between the central government and state Governments of Tripura ,Mizoram and representatives of the Bru tribe in New Delhi to end 23-year old Bru-Reang refugee crisis.
Key Points:
i.As per the new agreement, about 34,000 Bru refugees will be inhabited in Tripura and assisted by central government with its allocated budget of Rs 600 crores to help in their resettlement.
ii.Each family of the Bru community will be allotted individual land blocks & the individual terrain will be 2,500 sq ft. In addition, each family will be provided a one-time assistance of Rs. 4 lakh as fixed deposit (FD), Rs 1.5 lakh to build houses,financial assistance of Rs 5,000 per month for livelihood and free ration for the next 2 years.
iii.Mizoram Chief Minister (CM), Shri Zoramthanga, CM of Tripura, Shri Biplab Kumar Deb, Chairman, NEDA, Shri Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chairman, TIPRA, Shri Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, representatives of Bru tribes & other senior officers were also present during the signing ceremony.
About Bru-Reang Tribes:
- Reangs / Brus are the 2nd largest ethnic group in Mizoram state.
- The Bru community in Mizoram is considered a group of Scheduled Tribes (ST) and a separate caste group in Tripura.
- The people of this community speak the Katuic language.
Bru-Reang refugee crisis:
The residential area of the Bru community extends to Mizoram, Tripura in India and some areas of the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh.
In 1995, tension arose between the Bru community and the people of the Mizo community over their participation in the Mizoram state elections. People in the Mizo community stated that the people of the Bru community are not residents of the state. The 1996 communal riots between the Bru and people of the majority Mizo community led to their exodus.
In 1997, following ethnic tension, around 5,000 families of 30,000 Bru-Reang tribes were fled from Mizoram and took shelter in Tripura. These refugees were living in temporary shelters at Kanchanpur, in North Tripura.
About Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA):
Founded– 15 August 1947.
Headquarters– New Delhi.
Minister of State(MoS)- G.Kishan Reddy and Nityanand Rai.
About Tripura:
Capital– Agartala
Governor– Ramesh Bais
Folk dance– Hojagiri
National Parks- Clouded Leopard National Park ,Rajbari National Park.
About Mizoram:
Capital- Aizawl
Governor- P. S. Sreedharan Pillai
Folk dances– Cheraw Dance, Khuallam, Chailam, Sawlakin, Chawnglaizawn, Zangtalam
National Parks- Murlen National Park, Phawngpui National Park
