Bru Tribe

WHY IN NEWS?

Centre, Tripura, and Mizoram have signed an agreement with the Bru/Reang community promising to end their 23-year-old internal displacement crisis.

ABOUT BRU TRIBE

• The Bru or Reang is a community indigenous to Northeast India, living mostly in Tripura, Mizoram, and Assam. In Tripura, they are recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG).
• The tribe is a part of Scheduled Tribes list, follows Animism religion and speaks Katuic language.
• The Bru were originally from Tripura, and had migrated to Mizoram after their homes were flooded due to the commissioning of the Dumboor hydroelectric power project in South Tripura in 1976.
• Since Brus were not indigenous to Mizoram, there developed the ethnic tension between the Mizo tribe and the Bru tribe in 1995 where in various Mizo organizations like Young Mizo Association demanded that the voting rights of Brus must be taken away.
• The situation led to the armed movement in 1997 when villages were burnt down and around 5,000 families of Bru-Reang tribe were forced out of Mizoram. Later, they took shelter in Tripura.

Prelims Question

Q. Consider the following statements regarding Bru Tribe:
1.In Tripura, they are recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group.
2.Brus are indigenous to Mizoram.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a)1 only
b)2 only
c)Both 1 and 2
d)Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to the Prelims Question