As many as 32,876 people belonging to the Bru community will return to their homes in Mizoram for the first time after they had to leave the state following ethnic clashes around two decades ago.
The displaced people belonging to 5,407 families, currently living in temporary camps in Tripura, will be repatriated to Mizoram before September 30 this year, a home ministry spokesperson said.
This "major breakthrough" on repatriation of displaced Bru people from Mizoram since 1997 came after an agreement was signed by the Centre, governments of Mizoram and Tripura and Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum (MBDPF) on Tuesday.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalthanhawla and his Tripura counterpart Biplab Kumar Deb were present at the ceremony.
The central government will provide financial assistance for rehabilitation of Bru community members in Mizoram and address their issues of security, education, livelihood, etc. in consultation with the governments of Mizoram and Tripura.
A committee under the Special Secretary (Internal Security) in the home ministry, Rina Mitra, will coordinate the implementation of this agreement.
Ethnic violence in 1997 had forced a large number of people from Bru community to leave their homes in Mizoram.