Tripura's BJP-led government has decided to evacuate students of the state stranded in violence-hit Manipur. A total of 208 students from Tripura, who are studying at Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) and Central Agricultural University (CAU), are to be flown back from Imphal in two special commercial flights operated by IndiGo airlines, said Chief Minister Manik Saha at a media briefing in the state secretariat. While 171 students are scheduled to reach Agartala in the first flight after midnight, a second flight carrying 37 students is scheduled to take off on Sunday and reach Tripura via Guwahati. As per government reports, about 300 students from Tripura are staying in Manipur and a majority of them are studying at RIMS, CAU and National Institute of Technology. Speaking to reporters, Saha said he had discussions with Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh who assured him of the safety of Tripura students studying there. The CM said he reached out to Union home minister Amit Shah and civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and arranged two commercial flights for the evacuation of students. Director General, Tripura Police, Amitabh Ranjan, Chief Secretary J K Sinha and other officials were also present at the media briefing. A statement issued by the Department of Information and Cultural Affairs said heavy security arrangements have been made for students of Tripura studying in Manipur. “All kinds of security arrangements were made for students of the state studying in Manipur. So far, no alarming situation has arisen for students staying in Manipur…,” the statement said. The Tripura government has launched helpline numbers and a WhatsApp number for providing information to residents on the prevailing situation in Manipur. “We have launched a 24x7 helpline number and spoken to a doctor from Tripura who is serving as a faculty member at RIMS, Imphal,” the CM said. Earlier on Saturday, Opposition leader Animesh Debbarma expressed discontent at the state government’s approach towards rescuing the students stranded in Manipur and asked if Tripura was waiting for some student to die before they decided to evacuate them. Debbarma said 37 letters were sent to CM Saha and other ministers in the last few months on a host of issues but none of them have been replied to yet.
