India, Lanka discuss voluntary repatriation of Lankan refugees

India-Sri Lanka today held talks on voluntary repatriation of Sri Lankan refugees in the country, within days of deciding to "re-engage" on the issue during a meeting between their foreign ministers. During the first meeting between the officials of the two countries, in which Indian side was led by the Joint Secretary in-charge of Lanka in the External Affairs Ministry, the two sides talked about various aspects related to repatriation, officials sources said. There was also internal consultations on the issue with other ministries in the government, they said. Earlier this month, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Sri Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera, during their over three-hour-long talks, had decided to work on repatriation of Tamil refugees to Sri Lanka who had fled during the civil war that started in 1990s. According to official figures, there are more than 100,000 Sri Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu, of which some 68,000 are housed in over 100 government-run camps. (PTI)