Ministry to resettle 80 families in Madhu
Lakshmi de Silva
The Resettlement Ministry will resettle 80 Sinhala families chased
from their homes by the LTTE on August 17,1985 in the Madhu area, Mannar
district, Minister Milroy Fernando said.
A new Divisional Secretariat to bring back civil administration to
Madhu was established and opened by the Minister Friday.
All families were living opposite the Madhu Road, Railway station
over a long period and were providing services to Roman Catholic
pilgrims, a majority from the South who visit the Madhu Shrine,
especially during the church feast. But the terrorists had chased these
families, the Minister told the Daily News.
These Internally Displaced Persons met Ministers Milroy Fernando,
former Rehabilitation Minister and present Industries Minister Rishard
Bathiudeen, Northern Province Governor G.A. Chandrasiri, District
Secretary Mannar, the chief incumbent monk of a temple in the area and
representatives of the INGO Caritas to discuss the resettlement program.
Caritas had agreed to build houses for all 80 families, he said.
A school building at Madhu area had been vandalized by the LTTE. The
Tigers had removed the school building roof. There were 160 families
living in the area and their children had to study in a school without a
roof. The roof has now been covered by tarpaulins as a temporary
measure. Fifty bicycles were gifted to the families for their children
to travel to school, the Minister said.
Minister Fernando and other officials will also visited Manthai, one
of the first areas where the resettlement program was implemented in the
Mannar District to inspect the resettled IDPs. |
