Floods worsen tsunami refugees' woes

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 January 2006, 03:40 GMT]
One year has passed since Boxing day disaster. Tsunami relief supplies have stopped and the fourth installment of the six monthly installments promised by the Sri Lanka Governmnt was paid only two months ago. The refugees at Thiraimadu, an outer suburb of Batticaloa town, are yet to hear from the NGO that promised to build permanent houses for them. Meanwhile, refugees were hit by floods, twice in December, and again last Saturday when continuous rain for three days soaked the temporary shelters and inundated the shelter grounds with flood water.

Flooded temporary shelters at Thiraimadu
Flooded temporary shelters at Thiraimadu


Joseph Ragel with his child
Joseph Ragel with his child
Flooded temporary shelters at Thiraimadu
Flooded temporary shelters at Thiraimadu
Alagaiah Pushparajah
Alagaiah Pushparajah from Navalady
Joseph Ragel, 45, a father of two, lives in a temporary shelter at Thiraimadu.

"Our children are stranded in flooded shelters facing diseases and health hazards," says Ragel.

Around fifty families of 693 families in the temporary shelters, were forced to leave their shelters following heavy rains, Ragel adds.

"We are yet to hear from World Vision that promised to build permanent shelters," Ragel says.

Batticaloa's outskirt villages Navalady, Dutch Bar and Thiruchendur were devastated on Boxing day tsunami. The refugees were temporarily sheltered at Thiraimadu following the disaster.

Recent flood waters forced about 35 families to leave the area and seek accomodation with their relatives, notes Alagaiah Pushparajah, 49, another survivor of the Boxing day disaster.

Alagaiah lost his 33 years old wife, Radhika and two children, aged 7 and 9 on December 26, 2004.

"The rations have stopped. We have only received four installments of the relief money pledged by the Government," Alagaiah says.

"The installments meant for the first 6 months, have delayed for more than a year now", he adds.

Fouth installment was paid on November 25. The next one promised to be paid at the end of December is yet to be paid.

367 families from Navalady, 90 families from Thiruchendur and 236 families from Dutch Bar were settled in temporary shelters, according to Joseph Ragel.


Related Articles:
26.09.05   Aid fiasco in Sri Lanka
13.05.05   Lack of normalcy eclipsed by joint mechanism debate - Thamil..
09.05.05   Joint mechanism mired in Sinhala politics
20.04.05   Where the truce promise rings hollow
03.04.05   'Tender shoots of Mullaithivu'
07.02.05   A question of land
01.02.05   No sunny times for east coast idyll
25.01.05   Battered Komari fears long years in refugee camps
23.01.05   Colombo’s post tsunami development blueprint assailed
21.01.05   "Loss of children has shaken us"- Thamilini
09.01.05   Dismal state response reveals need for ISGA - TNA
08.01.05   Navalady - A village turned graveyard
02.01.05   LTTE stepping up relief ops in Batticaloa-Amparai - Col. Bha..
27.12.04   A Nation Unprepared

 

Latest 15 Reports
24.04.22 05:44  
தீவின் நெருக்கடிச் சூழலில் ஈழத்தமிழர் தேசம் கடைப்பிடிக்கவேண்டிய நிலைப்பாடுகள்
09.04.22 14:44   Photo
குறிதவறும் ஈழத்தமிழர் தலைமைகளுக்கு வரலாறு தருகின்ற எச்சரிக்கை
21.01.22 07:24   Photo
ஈழத்தமிழர் தேசத்தின் தலைமைத்துவம் தேர்தல் அரசியற் கட்சிகளுக்கு அப்பாலானது
02.11.21 15:32   Photo
13 ஆம் சட்டத்திருத்தத்தால் கட்டமைக்கப்பட்ட இன அழிப்பை எதிர்கொள்ள முடியுமா?
15.09.21 08:19  
English version not available
17.05.21 19:23   Photo
Ananthi blames war criminal Silva for blocking collective memorial at Mu'l'livaaykkaal
09.04.21 14:46  
English version not available
23.03.21 12:41   Photo
No focus on Tamil genocide, geopolitics gets played out in Geneva in favour of QUAD formation
21.03.21 13:34   Photo
Navi Pillay explains ‘human rights’ limitations in Geneva on Tamil genocide
15.03.21 20:36   Photo
Deceived Tamil activists in UK falsely claimed ‘substantial changes’ to Zero draft
09.03.21 21:34   Photo
UK repeatedly wronged Tamils says hunger-striker, demands genocide justice
26.02.21 11:53   Photo
Tamils witness false dilemma in Geneva as geopolitical formations pit against each other
19.02.21 14:02   Photo
UK not prepared to push for ICC option in new UNHRC Resolution
07.02.21 23:16   Photo
Unprecedented P2P uprising paves the way for rights-oriented politics of Tamils and Muslims
22.01.21 08:01   Photo
Gotabaya sets up deceptive COI citing ‘sovereignty’ and ‘non-aligned’ foreign policy
 
Find this article at:
http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=17037