Agartala, Aug 28 (IANS): The opposition CPI-M on Friday asked the BJP led government in Tripura to control the fast rising Covid-19 cases, curb unabated attacks on the opposition parties and provide financial aid to the distressed people.

Terming the Covid-19 situation as "grim", opposition leader and former Chief Minister Manik Sarkar said that the state government must trace, test and treat the people on a war footing. "Government should strengthen the infrastructure including the testing facilities across the state including in mofussil areas. Government's SOPs (Standard Operating Procedure) to deal with the Covid-19 management including the constitution of the containment zones must be realistic and people welfare centric," he told the media.

Sarkar, Chief Minister for 20 years (1998-2018), led a six member delegation of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MLAs and held a two-hour meeting with Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb. He raised many demands on numerous issues.

The Left legislators requested the Chief Minister to take care of the people in around 100 containment zones as they are facing critical problems of food and livelihood. Sarkar said that due to the pandemic a serious economic crisis has been prevailing in the state and the government must come forward with various schemes for the welfare of the people.

The opposition MLAs also urged the government to provide regular jobs to the 8,882 former government school teachers, who are part of the 10,323 government teachers who lost their jobs due to the Supreme Court and High Court orders citing "discrepancies in recruitment".

Sarkar said that during the Left regime, Tripura was the only state among the northeastern states to become an electricity surplus state, but the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) led government handed over the electricity infrastructure to private parties depriving the people of Tripura.

"We have told the Chief Minister that after a successful agitation programme of the CPI-M party in Tripura on August 26, BJP workers have attacked the opposition party supporters and members in as many as 33 places. Opposition party leaders and MLAs are unable to freely move in the state specially in the interior areas due to the violent activities of the ruling party workers," the CPI-M politburo member said.

He added: "Earlier over 350 Left leaders and members were killed by the terrorists in Tripura. Due to the erstwhile Left government's concerted efforts, decades old terrorism was tamed. But in the recent months there are some instances of reviving such outlawed terror acts. Government must firmly deal with the situation."