Guwahati: Tripura on Tuesday became free from its 35-year-long insurgency problem with the surrender of 584 leaders and cadres of National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) and the All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF), two remaining insurgent groups, the BJP-led state government said.
The leaders of the two groups led their cadres and laid down their weapons before Chief Minister Manik Saha at a formal surrender ceremony at Agartala, days after the two outfits signed a Memorandum of Settlement with the Centre and the state government.
The settlement was signed in New Delhi on September 4 in the presence of Home Minister Amit Shah. The Home Minister announced a special financial package of Rs. 250 crores for rehabilitation of the former militants and welfare of the tribals in Tripura.
"Once a hotbed of insurgency, Tripura today became free from the problem," CM Saha said after welcoming the leaders and cadres of the two outfits.
Biswa Mohan Debbarma, president of NLFT (BM), Parimal Debbarma, president NLFT (PD), Prasenjit Debbarma, president, NLFT (ORI) and Alindra Debbarma, president, ATTF, surrendered AK series rifles before the Chief Minister, who termed the event as a significant milestone in Tripura's history.
The weapons deposited by the insurgents included nine AK series rifles, one Beretta MX4 storm semi-automatic carbine, two 16mm rifles, 13 pistols, 89 country-made guns, eight factory made guns, seven landmines, five electric mines, twi Chinese grenades, 1,227 rounds of ammuntions.
Formed in 1989, NLFT had carried out large scale violence till an agreement was signed in 2019. The other faction led by Biswa Mohan Deb Barma, with hideouts in neighbouring Bangladesh, however, continued the "armed movement to protect the interests of the tribals. Both NLFT and ATTF had operated from their hideouts in Bangladesh with which Tripura shares 856km borders. The two outfits will soon be disbanded like the NDFB, ULFA, KLNLF, DHD and a few other insurgent groups in Assam.
Insurgency-free Northeast:
Saha said surrender of the insurgents in Tripura was a significant development towards fulfillment of Narendra Modi government's promise of making the Northeast free from its insurgency problem.
“When Narendra Modi took charge as Prime Minister of India in 2024, he consistently emphasized that the development of the country is impossible without the development of the Northeast. Today, we can see that the Northeast, which was once grappling with terrorism, is now almost free from it, with around 12 peace accords having been signed, three of which pertains to Tripura. From today, we can say that Tripura is now free from insurgency," Saha said.
The CM said both the state and the Centre have implemented a series of schemes for the development of the tribals.