More refugees arrive tomorrow | Page 8 | Daily News

More refugees arrive tomorrow

 

Forty three Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in Tamil Nadu, India will arrive in Sri Lanka tomorrow under the UNHCR facilitated voluntary repatriation programme, the Prison Reforms, Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Hindu Religious Affairs Ministry stated in a release yesterday.

They are scheduled to arrive in a SriLankan Airlines flight at 10.20 a.m from Trichy and Mihin Lanka flight at 12.20 p.m. from Chennai and Madurai.

Prison Reforms, Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Hindu Religious Affairs Minister D.M.Swaminathan who participated in a discussion with the UNHCR, facilitated the process and increased

the baggage allowance per person with assistance of the Public Enterprise Development Ministry, SriLankan Airlines and Mihin Lanka.

Ministry secretary V.Sivagnanasothy said of the 43 refugee returnees, 24 are males and 19 are females. The refugees will return to Trincomalee, Jaffna,Vavuniya, Mullaithivu, Kilinochchci and Mannar.

The UNHCR will provide free air tickets, reintegration allowance of US$ 75 per person, transport allowance US$ 19 per person and monetary non-food grant of US$ 75 per family. Since 2011, 4,589 refugees (16,511 families) have already returned to Sri Lanka, Sivagnanasothy said. Over 64,000 are stationed in 109 welfare camps in India. Totally, over 100,000 refugees are currently in India. 


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