Citizenship to refugees not part of 1987 accord, says Union Minister

‘T.N. had decided to build homes for Sri Lankan refugees’

December 07, 2021 10:47 pm | Updated 10:47 pm IST - CHENNAI

CHENNAI : 11/09/2021 : FOR CITY : Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees camp in Puzhal. Photo : PICHUMANI K / THE HINDU

CHENNAI : 11/09/2021 : FOR CITY : Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees camp in Puzhal. Photo : PICHUMANI K / THE HINDU

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Kumar Mishra on Tuesday clarified in the Lok Sabha that conferring citizenship on refugees from Sri Lanka was not part of the mandate of the Rajiv Gandhi-Jayawardene accord signed between India and Sri Lanka in 1987.

He made this statement in a written reply to an unstarred question raised by D. Ravikumar, Member of Parliament representing Villupuram, who sought details about those who got citizenship under the 1987 accord.

To a question on whether the Union Government had any proposal to increase the amount of cash dole for the refugees living in camps in Tamil Nadu, the Union Minister answered that the dole was considered “for revision from time to time.” He told the House that the Tamil Nadu Government had decided to construct 7,469 houses for the refugees.

Asked about the details of amenities given to refugees belonging to various countries, Mr. Mishra said the amenities, including cash dole, could not be compared with one another as the scheme for rehabilitation of refugees from various countries was “guided by the requirement of that particular community, area of their settlement and other considerations.”

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.