AGARTALA, July 11 (TIWN): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar on Friday left for Guwahati to attend first ever meeting with northeast Chief Ministers to be chaired by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on July 11. The meeting would be convened at Assam Administrative Staff College taking up the agenda of insurgency, border management, Natural Calamity and other developmental works, said official source.The meeting has come up just after the carrying out of a rare cross-border operation into Myanmar, to avenge the killing of 18 soldiers in Manipur this year. Minister Rajnath Singh during his visit here in Tripura this year, termed insurgency as the major problem that Northeastern region has been facing. Chief Ministers of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura will take part in the meeting. Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju will also participate in the meeting, said official source. Besides, the meeting to be chaired by Singh on July 11, would also discuss issues pertaining to improved border management between these two nations – India and Bangladesh.

A major share of Tripura’s woes emerge from its 856-kilometre international border with Bangladesh, which touches each of its bordering districts. However, despite all odds CM Manik Sarkar is expected to take up the issue of the repatriation of the 'Bru' refugees. 

It is to be mentioned here that during the recent identification process which had already kicked off but receives no turn out of the refugees, they were found reluctant to move back.

There are over 31,000 Brus belonging to 5286 families in six evacuee camps in Kanchanpur sub-division of North Tripura district.

They had fled their ancestral homes in Mizoram and have been staying here since October 1997. The Home Ministry has already released funds amounting to Rs 242.35 crore up to 2014-15 for maintenance of Bru migrants living in relief camps.