Resettlement of IDPs; Two-thirds complete

A total of 169,938 Internally Displaced Persons have been resettled in their native seats within a short era providing them the length of with the provision of health, shelter, sanitary, education co-operative, water, electricity and other facilities in their villages, Disaster Management and Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said.
"As a consequence of the speedy resettlement program the number of IDPs in welfare villages has come downward to 112,062 from 282,000," the Minister told a media briefing.
The Minister said that the administration has obviously shown the promise to resettle the IDPs as quickly as likely.
The relocation program for IDPs is in full swing achieving its set goals well inside the expected time border.
This might be a record for resettling IDPs. Most almost certainly by December 31 the administration will resettle a large number of IDPs out of the residual or else complete resettlement behavior, Minister Samarasinghe added.
At present 105,664 IDPs are in Vavuniya, 1,738 IDPs in Jaffna, 2,298 IDPs in Trincomalee. Approximately 2,360 IDPs are receiving action in several hospitals. A sum number of 112,062 IDPs are yet to be resettled.
However, the resettlement process in a way depend on the on-going de-mining behavior The Government has by now put into operation 24 de-mining machines. It purchased 19 de-mining machines out of 24 while the UN has offered five machines.
In de-mining activities main concern has been given to public roads, ordinary places and villages earmarked for speedy resettlement.
Accordingly, public places, villages and many roads counting A9, A32 roads and railway tracks are now free from land mines.
On the recommendation of President Mahinda Rajapaksa the Government has taken action to funding the IDPs freedom of group from December 1.
Accordingly, 22,443 IDPs have gone away from their wellbeing villages. Out of this figure 9,778 have come back. "Any person can leave the welfare villages and go back as they wish. No act will be taken against the people who wont come back to IDP Villages. The liberty is not limited to 15 days," Minister Samarasinghe noted.
The Minister rejected sure media reports that safety forces personnel will go after the IDPs if they don't come back.
"It is up to them to decide whether to return or not. What the administration did was to grant the freedom for them to move absent as they wish. However, the Government is carrying out the welfare activities in welfare villages further as usual," Samarasinghe said.
Courtesy : Daily News