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Younger Tripura tribals support separate statehood demand due to disparity in devpt of plains, hills: Minister

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Agartala, Mar 22 (PTI) Tripura Tribal Welfare Minister and IPFT leader Mevar Kumar Jamatia on Tuesday claimed that a majority of the younger generation of the tribals support the demand for a separate state for the indigenous people due to a disparity in the development of the hills and the plains.

Tribals, who constitute one-third of the state’s estimated 40 lakh population, mostly reside in hilly areas governed by the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC), while Bengalis, who form two-thirds of the population, reside mainly in the plains.

“It is a fact that a majority of our young generation support the separate statehood demand because of disparity or unequal development between hills and plains,” the minister said in the assembly.

“Unfortunately, even after 74 years of Independence, disparity in the development of the plains and the hills persists. Indigenous people are crying for social and economic justice,” he said.

The minister, however, said that the BJP-IPFT government has accorded the topmost priority to the development of the indigenous people.

“New schemes have been launched in the last four years of the BJP-IPFT rule to augment new challenges. For the first time in history, the Centre has sanctioned a special package of Rs 1,300 crore for infrastructure development in the tribal-dominated areas of the state,” Jamatia, also the general secretary of the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), said.

The special package will be spent on improving basic facilities such as road, healthcare, education and drinking water over the next five years.

“The CPI(M) got 35 years to serve the people and the Congress ruled the state for 30 years but both failed to deliver. The BJP-IPFT government has done well for the welfare of the indigenous people. The people will judge the performance of the government,” he added.

Tripura Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance or TIPRA Motha, a regional political party led by royal scion Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, seeks a separate state ‘Greater Tipraland’ for the indigenous people of Tripura.

The party swept the TTAADC elections held in April last year, winning 18 of the 28 seats over the separate statehood demand in a direct contest with the ruling BJP-IPFT alliance.

The statehood demand may affect results in 20 assembly seats, where tribals hold considerable clout electorally, in the 60-member House. Assembly elections in the state are due early next year. PTI PS ACD ACD

This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.

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