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/ India News / 2007 / July 2007 / July 22, 2007 Lankan refugees live in appalling conditions in Tamil Nadu |
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The Tamils, who fled from Sri Lanka due to the internal strife there and took shelter in refugee camps along the coastal city of Salem in Tamil Nadu, are living in deplorable conditions.
Kangayam (TN), July 22 : The Tamils, who fled from Sri Lanka due to the internal strife there and took shelter in refugee camps along the coastal city of Salem in Tamil Nadu, are living in deplorable conditions.
About 70 Lankan Tamil families, who made an abandoned warehouse their 'home' in the Kangayam camp, are still struggling to get the bare necessities of life such as water.
"Here we have sleepless nights and there are no basic facilities and there isn't water even," said Kamala Deve, who shifted to this camp from another refugee camp in Rameshwaram seven months back, after she was promised of a proper accommodation.
Lankans belonging to ethnic Tamil minority arrive mostly in and around the coastal belt in Rameswaram area, in search of a safe haven and find familiarity with Tamil Nadu.
After getting themselves fingerprinted at the nearest police post, refugees are sent to the main refugee camp at Mandapam camp, where they are screened by the security agencies. Subsequently, they are sent to various refugee camps in the State.
The refugees, many of whom have lived in asbestos-roofed warehouse for over a decade, say the living space is cramped and there is no privacy. They are living in makeshift partitions in the warehouse.
"We have covered our living area with paper boards, plastic sheets and thatched leaves. Few families have even used clothes and saris. Twelve-years have passed and our children's schooling and everything else is on the line," said Mohan, another refugee living in the camp.
Lankan refugees are demanding that houses should be built at the ample space behind the warehouse itself, instead of being shifted to any other place.
"We have suffered a lot and it will be very difficult if we are shifted to another refugee camp. We will again face the same problems and it will take more than 10-years for us to settle ourselves," he added.
Meanwhile, the State government has promised to look into the problems of refugees.
Currently some 59,000 refugees live in these camps, while another 35,000-40,000 refugees live on their own.
ANI
