Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar today said he had requested union home minister P Chidambaram to take steps to repatriate 37,000 displaced Reang or Bru tribespeople to Mizoram.

"During a recent visit to New Delhi, I met Chidambaram and requested him to take steps for their return to their homeland in Mizoram. These people sheltered in six camps in North Tripura district have been facing serious socio-economic and security-related problems due to their long stay in Tripura," Sarkar told reporters.

The Bru/Reang people took shelter in Tripura following ethnic clashes with the majority Mizo tribespeople since 1997 in neighbouring Mizoram.

Sarkar said the children of the refugees were facing a bleak future as they were not getting proper education and healthcare facilities.

Chidambaram visited Aizawl last month and asked Mizoram government and the tribal leaders to help repatriate the displaced people in their ancestral homes.


Das claimed some 'invisible forces' had conspired to drive a wedge between the BJP-JMM and accused JMM for the prevailing political instability.

The former Deputy Chief Minister said a mid-term poll was the only solution to have a stable government and favoured increasing number of assembly seats in the state.

"We had recommended to the union government twice to increase the assembly seats from 81 to 150, but no steps were taken in this regard," he said.