Agartala, June 12: Hundreds of surrendered militants on Friday afternoon withdrew road and railway blockades across Tripura after several rounds of negotiations with senior state and central officials, officials said. Tribal Welfare Minister Bikash Debbarma, Inspector General of Police (Intelligence and Security) Krishnendu Chakraborty and other senior officers held talks with the agitating former cadres, who had earlier launched a 72-hour protest over alleged non-implementation of a tripartite rehabilitation pact.
“Following the talks with the surrendered militants, they lifted their road and railway blockades on Friday afternoon,” a senior official said, adding that fuller details of the outcome would be released later. The blockades had disrupted vehicular movement and freight transport from 6 a.m., and train services were severely affected; the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) reported controlled movement of five passenger trains at various Tripura stations.
Police said about 450 tribal youths, all surrendered former extremists from the now-disbanded National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) and the All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF), organised blockades at three points in West Tripura and Khowai districts along National Highway-8 and the state’s only railway line. National Highway-8 is widely regarded as Tripura’s lifeline, and the single rail link is the state’s primary connection with the rest of India.
The protesters said their action targeted the alleged non-fulfillment of key provisions of a tripartite agreement signed in New Delhi on September 4, 2024, in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha. Under that process, NLFT and ATTF cadres formally surrendered before Chief Minister Saha during a ceremony at the 7th Battalion headquarters of the Tripura State Rifles in Jampuijala on September 24, 2024, laying down a substantial cache of arms and ammunition and entering the state’s rehabilitation programme.
Former NLFT leader Prasanjit Debbarma said about 1,200 ex-militants had surrendered under various accords expecting rehabilitation and socio-economic reintegration. He alleged many commitments in the tripartite agreement remain unmet and claimed that, despite repeated appeals and memoranda to the state and central authorities — including to Chief Minister Saha, Tribal Welfare Minister Bikash Debbarma and Chief Secretary J.K. Sinha — only 79 cadres have so far been identified as beneficiaries of the rehabilitation package.
According to the protesters, the Central government announced a rehabilitation package worth Rs 250 crore covering economic assistance, livelihood generation and welfare measures, but large numbers of former cadres continue to face financial hardship because several provisions have not been implemented. “Getting no response from the government to our demands and issues, we were compelled to launch a 72-hour blockade of national highways and railway lines at three locations in West Tripura and Khowai districts,” Prasanjit Debbarma told the media.
Chief Minister Saha had earlier described the surrender of NLFT and ATTF militants as a major step towards ending decades of insurgency in Tripura; officials said any formal outcomes from Friday’s negotiations would be communicated once finalised.
Original Source: https://theshillongtimes.com/2026/06/12/tripura-blockade-called-off-after-talks-surrendered-militants-press-for-execution-of-accord/
Category: NATIONAL,News Alert
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Publish Date: 2026-06-12 15:46:00
