AGARTALA, 31 Dec: Tipra Motha-run Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) has sought Governor Indrasena Reddy Nallu’s intervention to clear bills awaiting approval at the Raj Bhavan.
There are currently six bills, including some customary laws passed by the state’s lone tribal council, awaiting approval from the Raj Bhavan, officials said.
“We had a productive meeting today with the governor at the TTAADC conference. This was his first visit to the autonomous district council headquarters, and we discussed some important issues with him,” chief executive member (CEM) Purna Chandra Jamatia told PTI on Saturday.
Jamatia said that the executive council urged the governor to clear the pending bills. “We urged the governor to expedite the approval process, so that the tribal council can make progress,” he said.
“We also raised the issue of financial constraints faced by the autonomous district council, which covers two-thirds of the state’s geographical area,” he added.
“The council had approved a budget of Rs 1,135 crore for the year 2023-’24, but we only received Rs 450 crore from the state government, leading to financial constraints,” he added.
Asserting that the TTAADC spends Rs 689 crore annually to cover employee and pensioner expenses, the CEM said that the council has requested the governor’s intervention to secure an additional Rs 450 crore to cover expenses for the remaining months of the current fiscal.
“We also requested the governor to allocate funds to the tribal council under two separate categories: committed expenditure, and development activities. Insufficient funds have negatively impacted development projects in the tribal council,” he explained.
Jamatia said that the executive council urged the governor to hand over nine departments to the TTAADC administration for effective functioning and monitoring.
During the meeting, the council demanded immediate elections to village committees (similar to gram panchayats) as the absence of elected bodies is hindering development work.
Jamatia added that the governor attentively listened to the issues raised by the executive council and assured them that he would address the matters with the appropriate authorities. (PTI)
