The Centre has sanctioned Rs365 crore for constructing a new Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Sabroom, the southernmost town in South Tripura district, about 130 km from here.This will be the second ICP along the Indo-Bangla border in the state after Akhaura ICP here, which was set up in 2013.Addressing an event here on Wednesday, Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb said, he had requested Union Home minister Amit Shah for sanctioning funds for the ICP, when he met him three days back."I am very happy that he approved it so quickly," the chief minister said.The state government had sent the Sabroom ICP proposal to the MHA in 2016 for linking the bridge on river Feni with Chittagong division of the neighbouring country.After the BJP came to power in Tripura in 2018, the state government received Rs 2,500 crore from the Centre, which he claimed was a "record".The BJP-IPFT government came to power two years ago in the northeastern state by ending 25-years of Left rule.Tripuras first Special Economic Zone (SEZ), with an estimated investment of Rs 1,550 crore which will generate 12,000 skilled jobs, will also come up at Paschim Jalefa, Sabroom, officials said.The SEZ will open new avenues to attract private investment considering the proximity of the Chittagong Port and construction of a bridge across river Feni in South Tripura that is underway, they said.On several occasions, Deb had said that a SEZ will be set up at Sabroom town to attract investments from Bangladesh.He said the BJP had made a poll promise to set up a SEZ at Sabroom before 2018 Tripura assembly elections."Sabroom has been identified for setting up the SEZ as the Indian Railways has built a goods dumping yard there. The bridge over the river Feni will be completed by this year and an International Check Post will also be built soon," Deb had said.Bulk of the trade between the two countries is carried out through Benapole-Petrapole border in West Bengal whereas Tripura is more accessible to Bangladesh, the chief minister said.Bangladesh authorities had been requested to enlist Tripura as one of their export routes, Deb said.
