Srilankan Refugees
Due to ethnic violence and disturbed conditions of Sri Lanka, a large number of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees had entered India since July, 1983 in phases. As on 1st February, 2015, there are 1,01,896 Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees staying in the country. Out of this, 64,823 refugees are staying in 109 camps in Tamil Nadu and 1 camp in Odisha. Remaining 37,073 refugees are staying outside the camps after getting themselves registered in the nearest police station. Pending repatriation, certain essential relief facilities such as monthly cash doles, subsidized ration, free clothing materials, utensils, cremation and shradh grants and infrastructural facilities in camps are provided on humanitarian grounds.
A proposal for visit of an Inter-Ministerial delegation to the refugee camps in Tamil Nadu to assess the desire of Sri Lankan refugees and ascertain the kind of facilitation they need to return to Sri Lanka was given to the State Government. The Govt. of Tamil Nadu has reported that the voluntary repatriation could be considered only after concrete and credible measures taken by Sri Lankan Govt. and as such repatriation at this stage is pre-mature and be deferred at present.
This was stated by the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Kiren Rijiju in a written reply to a question by Shri C. Mahendran, Shri Pr. Senthil Nathan, Shri Md. Badaruddoza Khan and Adv. M. Udhayakumar in the Lok Sabha today.
****
KSD/PK/BK/RS