323-km long human chain to get Centre's attention

The ruling Left front in Tripura, the only communist-ruled state in the country, on Wednesday sought the Centre’s attention towards a slew of the state’s demands with 2.5 lakh people joining hands to form a 323-km human chain.

The hour-long unique protest was held to condemn the Centre’s alleged ignorance towards the state. The CPM, the lead constituent of the Left front that has been ruling Tripura since 1993, organised the human chain that covered virtually all parts of the state.

Led by Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, ministers, party workers and supporters as well as the people came together to draw the Centre’s attention towards an array of demands from the state that the state government had been pressing upon New Delhi for some time and had failed to get any positive response.

Over 2.5 lakh people braved heavy rain and inclement weather condition across the state to form the chain.  “We are a small state and often overlooked by the Centre. Our government has been lauded by New Delhi for successful implementation of various Central schemes, yet when it comes to our state-specific demands, the Centre had remained noncommittal. We thought that we should start a mass movement inside the state to draw the Centre’s attention. Hence the human chain. The participation was massive,” CPM state secretary Bijan Dhar told Deccan Herald over phone.

The main demands raised were the withdrawal of the land acquisition bill, higher budgetary allocation to rural development schemes in the state, supply of 35 kg rice to each poor family for Rs 2 per kg and special economic package to the north-eastern states.