12 more Lankan refugees land near Dhanushkodi

MADURAI: A fresh group of 12 Sri Lankan refugees landed near Arichalmunai in Ramanathapuram district on Tuesday. The group, which included members of two families and an individual, stranded off the fourth sandbar was brought to the shore by the Indian Coast Guard Hovercraft, Ramanathapuram SP P Thangadurai said.

After inquiries, the SP said the group, which consisted of three men, three women, four girls and two boys, had boarded a fibre boat from Talaimannar around 2 am on Monday sailed illegally into the Indian waters and landed near Arichalmunai coast. After taking the group into custody, investigating agencies, including district police, Coastal Security Group and ‘Q’ Branch police, quizzed the refugees and sent them to the Mandapam rehabilitation camp, the SP said.

Inspector of Police S Maheswari, Rameswaram ‘Q’ Branch, when contacted, said a total of 170 refugees from various parts of Sri Lanka, who arrived here since March this year, were accommodated at the rehabilitation camp in Mandapam.

The refugees, who arrived on Tuesday were identified as K Kalaikumar (33) of Chettikulam, Jaffna, his wife Anandhini (31), their son Sulakshan (12), daughter Sulakshana (11), Thillaiammal (68), wife of Anandavadivelu, Jaffna, V Sasikaran (35) of Batticaloa, his wife Kalaiselvi (30), their son Pranavan (6), daughters - Ginidisidka (10), Hamshika (9) and Sashmika (5) - and Kayilayapillai (54), an individual from Chettikulam, sources said.