Chonmipem Horam
Tripura is all set to go to polls on April 23 for two Lok Sabha seats- East Tripura and West Tripura. As many as 18 candidates have filed nomination paper to try their luck.
Among the candidates who are in the fray include sitting MPs Bajuban Reang & Khagen Das of the CPM, being challenged by Sudip Roy Berman & Dibachandra Hrangkhawal of the Congress. Azrun Chandra Bhowmik & Rita Debbarma of Trinamool Congress and Nilmoni Deb & Pulin Dewan of the BJP are also in the contest.
A virulent form of meningitis disease has replaced terrorism as the major poll issue in the state apart from several other issues related to people here.
The Opposition is quick to lash out at ruling CPI-M-led Left Front government for failing to tackle outbreak of the disease in Dhalai districts that officially claimed 43 lives in two months.
The Left Front has in turn turned the tables against the Central government blaming the latter for not sending required vaccines.
The BJP and the Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT) have also joined in to attack the Left Front for its failure on this front.
Since armed conflicts have hampered the state as an aftermath of Indo-Pakistani war of 1971, illegal migrations of Bengali people from Bangladesh-- which surrounds the state on north, south and west, have added to insurgent problems here.
Various regional groups like The Tripura National Volunteers (TNV), the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) and the All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF) were formed to drive out the Bengalis from the state. These extremists groups on the border areas have caused havoc to people by extortion, assaults and abductions. Infact, Tripura was once considered as the abduction center in the North East.
However, the ruling Left Front govt has been successful to a great extend in taming this problem.
The problem of illegal immigration has been taken up with the Centre to seal the border areas effectively and mount pressures on Bangladesh to surrender the extremists operating in their region.
Besides, Tripura has also faced infrastructural facilities and connectivity problems as major trading centres, roads, railways lie on the Bangladesh side which covers nearly three fourths of the state border. Inadequate Central assistance and lack of exploitation of natural resources have led to rise of unemployment in the state.
These are some of the important issues which the rival political parties are highlighting in the polls to woo the voters.
