DHALAI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday hit out at Left parties for turning Tripura into a “backward” state during their 35-year rule and said it could witness progress only after the BJP assumed power in 2018.Addressing a public meeting here after visiting a village where displaced Bru tribals were rehabilitated, Shah said that Tripura remained behind on all parameters of development during the communist rule but is now moving forward on the path of progress.”For 35 years, the communists ruled Tripura. The communists claimed that they worked for the welfare of the poor. The Congress also ruled Tripura for a considerable time. But the people of the state always remained poor. It was when the BJP came to power that Tripura could witness development,” he said.Shah said when he visited Tripura in 2017 as BJP president and stayed for five days, only 11 people took party membership.”Gradually we started our work. We worked hard and could oust the communists from power” after toiling for years, he said.The home minister said during the Left rule, just 2.5 per cent of the people used to get piped drinking water and now 85 per cent get potable water.Under the communist rule, there was no free foodgrains for the poor but now each person gets 5 kg rice and everyone is getting free treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh, he said.Shah said investments have come to Tripura and people are getting free power and LPG connections.Now the school drop rate is less than 3 per cent while enrolment is 99 per cent, But during the Left rule it was very poor, he said.”Tripura is now peaceful following the signing of peace accords with insurgents. With the blessings of Maa Tripurasunderi, Tripura will be one of the most developed states in the country. Today, I am getting immense happiness,” he said.Referring to the settlement of Bru refugees, the home minister said the BJP governments at the Centre and the state decided to rehabilitate 40,000 displaced people.”The Brus were living in sub-human conditions. But the Left government never took any action to improve their condition. Now we are addressing it and already 11 villages have been set up while one more is in the works,” he said.
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