Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) the details of facilities so far provided by the Union Government to the Tamils in the war hit Sri Lanka;
(b) the progress made in the setting up of a field hospital in Sri Lanka; and
(c) the steps taken by the Indian Government to assuage the sufferings of Tamil population in the island nation after the presidential election?

ANSWER THE MINISTER OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS (SHRI S.M. KRISHNA)

(a) to (c) The Government is taking several measures to assist in the process of relief and rehabilitation of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Northern Sri Lanka. As a measure of immediate relief to IDPs, GoI sent 2.5 lakh family relief packs of food, clothing and essential supplies in several consignments. Two consignments of medical supplies have been gifted to the Sri Lankan Government to cater to the urgent requirement of IDPs.

GoI has allocated Rs. 500 crore for the rehabilitation of the IDPs and reconstruction of the Northern and Eastern Sri Lanka. The expenditure from these funds include the deployment of a 60-member Indian emergency field hospital for six months in Vavuniya, which treated around 50,000 patients from March-September, 2009 and for the deployment of India assisted 7 de-mining teams to facilitate the early resettlement of IDPs to their original areas of habitation. We have also sent 5,200 tons of shelter material, 70,000 agricultural starters’ packs and procured 4 lakh cement bags for distributing among the resettling IDP families. In addition to these, India has also gifted 55 buses for the use of people in Northern and Eastern Province of Sri Lanka.

Government of India has emphasised to the Government of Sri Lanka that the way forward lies in a peacefully negotiated political settlement within the framework of a united Sri Lanka, acceptable to all communities in Sri Lanka, including the Tamils.

http://www.mea.gov.in/mystart.php?id=220216004.

Lok Sabha

Sri Lanka

South Asia