Mainpat: Mainpat Settlement Officer Tsewang Yangtso-led delegation comprising representatives of the Local Tibetan Assembly and Cooperative Society met with the newly elected Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Honourable Vishnu Dev Sai, on 5 January 2024, to congratulate him on his election and presented him with a thangka of the Buddha.

She apprised him of the pressing concerns of the settlement, including the land issues and the implementation of the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy 2014.

In accordance with the CTA’s vision for the sustenance of Tibetan settlements through the creation of new economic opportunities, such as turning settlements into tourist hotspots, the settlement cooperative society is overseeing the project of building lodgings, restaurants and shops. The TSO sought to apprise the state Tourism Minister, Brij Mohan Agarwal, of the same and appealed for support in order to prevent any obstruction from the locals in the future.

On the same day, the TSO-led delegation met with the Chief Secretary of Chhattisgarh Amitabh Jain and Secretary Bhuvnesh Yadav of the state Revenue Department to relay the same pressing concerns of the settlement.

The day before, on 4 January 2024, the new MLA of Chhattisgarh, Ram Kumar Toppo, who had arrived at the settlement on a visitation programme, was warmly received by the settlement office and settlers. The visiting MLA assured assistance of any kind in his speech, and he was apprised of the welfare concerns of the settlement by the TSO.