Vavuniya has turned into a hive of activity as some 30,000 displaced persons poured in by Friday, after fleeing Tiger -controlled areas. Authorities are not only striving to provide immediate relief to the displaced but they are also looking beyond accommodating them in welfare centres.
Presidential Advisor and Member of Parliament, Basil Rajapaksa, who is spearheading the programmes concerning the displaced persons told The Sunday Times, that the government was not only concentrating on accommodating the people in welfare centres, but also intends resettling more than 80 per cent of them in their original villages before the end of the year.
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| One of the resettlement villages coming up in Vavuniya. Pix by Priyantha Hewage |
“Waddakku Wasantham” (Re-awakening of the North) the government’s multi-pronged resettlement and development plan is aimed at restoring normality in areas where government troops and Tiger guerrillas once fought pitched battles, with civilians being caught up in the conflict, he said.
“We will be starting from Mannar and the President wants all persons in the “Rice Bowl” of Mannar to be resettled before April, enabling them to start Paddy cultivation for the Yala season,” Mr. Rajapaksa explained.
The government’s resettlement plan is being backed by a development programme which includes the construction of a bridge across Pooneryn to Sangupiddy giving access from Mannar to Jaffna by road as an alternative route to the A 9 or the Kandy – Jaffna road.
In addition, in a bid to expedite the resettlement of the displaced persons in the Wanni, plans have been drawn up to supply electricity, develop roads, irrigation tanks, schools, hospitals and other damaged infrastructure.The World Bank has already offered Rs. 385 million for the development of the Giant Tank and Rs. 200 million for the Iranamadu Tank which is to be used to supply the Jaffna peninsula with water, Mr. Rajapaksa said.
He said, India has pledged support to reconstruct some of the damaged roads in the north and look into the possibility of developing the rail road line to the north.
As an initial measure to resume development activities, the Army mine clearing units which were operating in the eastern province, were moved into the Wanni on Friday to expedite clearing of the mines. The eastern province mine clearing activities have been taken over by other de-mining groups.
To support government plans to restore normality, six police stations are being opened in the former LTTE-controlled areas. The first was opened in Kilinochchi, at the former LTTE peace secretariat.
As long term plans to resettle the displaced are being put into place, the immediate concerns of the families who have arrived in welfare centres and their families, some of them living overseas, have been the welfare measures provided to the displaced.
At least 10 schools, a technical college, a faculty of education are being used as temporary shelters. “The schools will be used only temporarily. Thereafter, the people will be taken to transit homes similar to those that were put up during the tsunami and operations in the east. The special feature of these transit homes is that when the people leave them to be resettled in their original homes or areas, they will be able remove the temporary shelters and take them along with them,” Mr. Rajapaksa said.
The displaced persons will have access to banking facilities and co-operative shops will be opened at the transit villages enabling them to purchase goods.
The government will also continue to offer food and thereafter dry rations. It will spend about Rs. 680 million to provide water supply facilities alone for the temporary homes.
“We are making use of our experience gained in handling tsunami victims and also the experience in handling the displaced persons in the eastern province, many of whom have been resettled,” Mr. Rajapaksa said.
He said schools will be set up with classes from year 1 to 13, enabling the displaced persons to continue with their studies. Teachers who are among those displaced will be made use of to conduct classes.
For the time being the government hopes to keep all visitors away as it could disrupt relief operations and pose security risks as well.
A registration process has been put into place where the inmates are being issued identity cards while data on the displaced will be available on a data base which could be accessed. A hotline will also be set up for people to call and find out details regarding those in the camps.
As the ambitious government plan gets under way local and international attention is focused on the government’s plans to resettle the displaced back in their villages.
Vavuniya students face education crisis
By Nadia Fazlulhaq
More than 35,000 students of whom 4000 are G.C.E.O/L and A/Level pupils in Vavuniya (South), would be deprived of their studies because of schools in the district being utilise to house internally displaced people.
The schools that are being utilised to house the displaced include, Gamini Maha Vidyalaya, Tamil Maha Vidyalayam, Hindu Maha Vidyalayam, Poonthottum Maha Vidyalayam, Chettikulum Maha Vidyalam, Kandawaramani Maha Vidyalyam, Aravithottam Maha Vidyalayam, Muslim Maha Vidyalaya, Rambeikulam Convent, and Seivarathirkesa Girls College .
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| A temporary ‘school’ in
progress |
Other than these schools, the displaced are also being housed at the College of Education and the Technical College of Vavuniya. A senior director of the National College of Education said that all teaching at the Vavuniya College of Education had come to a halt and no decision had been taken on what needs to be done. There are more than 250 students enrolled at the Vavuniya College of Education.
Some displaced people are being found shelter at the Jaffna University hostel too.Education Minister Susil Premjayanth told the Sunday Times this would only be a short-term problem as four new model villages are being constructed for the displaced.
“As soon as the villages are constructed we will transfer these displaced families and take immediate measures to re-open the schools that have been used as accommodation facilities,” he said.
However, Vavuniya District Secretary Mrs. P.S.M.Charles said the education sector has been severely affected and the situation would only worsen with more people being housed in schools.
According to Vavuniya (South) Zonal Education Director Mrs. V.R.Oswald, temporary camps would be set up in cultural halls, kovils and church halls where students especially O/Level and A/Level students could continue with their studies.
“This is a difficult task but we have to take into consideration the plight of the students among these displaced people and come up with urgent temporary programmes,” she said.
Meanwhile a senior officer attached to the Ministry of Resettlement told The Sunday Times there was a possibility that more schools may have to be used for accommodation purposes. This would mean that these schools would have to be closed probably for more than a month until temporary structures were put up, he said.
Trincomalee too
The Sunday Times learns that displaced people are being housed in some schools of Trincomalee too.
According to the Trincomalee Zonal education office, the Methodist Girls’ College has already been turned into a temporary shelter, while more schools are expected to be utilised. |
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