Supreme Court today expressed its displeasure over the tardy progress made by the Centre in the last ten years on the rehabilitation and resettlement of displaced Reang tribes who were forced to leave their villages in Mizoram and migrate to Tripura.
The apex court directed that the Centre, in consultation with the two states, would file a proper affidavit in four weeks giving a time-bound action plan for the rehabilitation of the displaced tribes.
A special social justice bench comprising Justices M B Lokur and U U Lalit asked Additional Solicitor General N K Kaul that it should be ensured that the plan should not be "unilateral" and all stake holders including the Chief Secretaries of the two states must be consulted.
The Bench, which posted the matter for February 27, was not happy with the Centre's submission that there were regular meetings on the issue.
It perused the material placed before it and said there were few meetings and counted them year wise since 2010 to 2013.
The bench was annoyed that merely a sum of Rs one lakh each was spent on refugees in the last 15 years.
The ASG assured the bench that he will come with a better affidavit and said "what has happened in the past is past and unfortunate and I will see what can be done from today".
The bench was hearing the PILs filed in 2005 by Akhil Bharatiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram and another in 2007 by Asian Indigenous & Tribal People's, both voluntary organisation working for the welfare of the tribals.
