Tourism building to be reconstructed after blast along Tripura-Mizoram border

Agartala/Aizawl, May 31 (IANS) The Tripura government will reconstruct the eco-tourism building along the Tripura-Mizoram inter-state border as the under-construction building was badly damaged by unidentified people on May 27, officials said on Saturday.

A Tripura Tourism Department official said that Tourism and Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury held a meeting with senior officials on Friday in North Tripura district’s Jampui, along Mizoram, and decided to reconstruct the eco-tourism building and work for the purpose would start soon.

A senior Police official said that unidentified people hurled moderate-intensity explosives targeting the under-construction building at Phuldungsei village, leading to substantial damage to the structures. Police authorities of both Tripura and Mizoram are now investigating the incident separately.

"Tripura Police are now investigating the matter to nab the wrongdoers. Mizoram Police are also probing the matter to apprehend the people responsible for the incident. We have good relations with Mizoram Police and they assured us to cooperate in this matter," North Tripura District's Superintendent of Police Avinash Rai told IANS over phone from North Tripura District headquarters, Dharmanagar.

A Mizoram government official said in Aizawl that there are some disputed patches along the 109 km Tripura-Mizoram interstate border.

People living on both sides of the interstate border claimed that Phuldungsei village comes under the territory of both Tripura and Mizoram, and the areas have been disputed for many years.

A Tripura Tourism Department official said that the buildings are being constructed in the forest lands of Phuldungsei village at a cost of Rs 3.12 crore to promote tourism.

The project is under the ‘Swadesh Darshan Scheme’, a flagship initiative of the Union Tourism Ministry.

The official said that in Friday’s meeting, besides the elected leaders and senior officials of the Tripura government, leaders of the Young Mizo Association (YMA) and Mizo Convention were present.

After the May 27 incident, additional security personnel were deployed in the area by both states, while the authorities on both sides are closely monitoring the situation to prevent any further escalation in view of the blast in the under-construction building.

The Tripura government took up the matter with the Mizoram government, the official said.

The district authorities of North Tripura district and Mizoram's Mamit district, along with the officials of the Survey of India, earlier on several occasions held discussions over the disputed patches of the two northeastern states.

Mizoram civil society and student organisations occasionally opposed any constructions by the Tripura government along the “disputed inter-state borders”.

Tripura Forest, Science and Technology and Environment Minister Animesh Debbarma told IANS that he has sought a report from the officials over the incident.

--IANS

sc/dan