'Home Sweet Home' for Mannar IDPs

by Dhaneshi YATAWARA

Jensila is just sixteen. Still studying at Arrippu Roman Catholic Tamil Maha Vidyalam, she is hoping for a bright future as an engineer. This bright eyed teenager is from one of the luckiest families who are being resettled in their ancestral properties in the Arippu Grama Niladhari (GN) Division in Mannar District. "I want to study English very well so that I can follow many other subjects as well," Jensila said with a smile. She was enjoying the entire event sitting under the shade of a neem tree with her clique of friends.

Like Jensila, other school children too were present at the event held at the Arippu Roman Catholic church in Mannar. The event started around 9 O' clock in the morning. As usual the entire environment was getting extremely hot and the number of `neem' trees planted in the entire ground gave its cooling shade lavishly to all. People were much happy to be back in their old surroundings though they know that they have to start their lives from the very beginning.

This was the start of the second phase of the resettlement programme launched under the umbrella of 'Uthuru Wasanthaya' (Wadakkin Wasantham) - Spring for the North. The second phase expects to resettle more families than the previous one, in seven GN Divisions of the Musali Divisional Secretary's Division. Most of the people being resettled in these areas were temporarily sheltered in the Nanattan area - either with family and friends or in the welfare camps. Luckily, since Nanattan was under the Government control throughout, the people were able to continue their usual livelihood activities. Almost all the people are depending on fishing. They were flourishing in their livelihoods until the LTTE terrorism struck them.

For Yogarani (46), a mother of four teenage girls, this is a dream come true. "We were staying with our family friends. My girls had to travel all the way from Nanattan to Arippu to attend school. Now we hope that everything will be back to normal soon," Yogarani said.

Her 48-year-old husband Nadar, a fisherman by profession was extremely happy to come back to an area free from the LTTE scourge. "I was afraid of my four girls. They were recruiting teenagers forcefully. I'm very happy that we are free at long last. That's all we want," he said. Though many are fishermen during the off season the entire village become a farming community, Nadar claimed.

Though the area is close to the coastal belt the geography is such that it supports paddy cultivation as well. Signs of past prosperity are still visible. More into the landside, there were long stretches of paddy fields.

Once a flourishing locality the Musali Division is in the process of re-gaining its lost glory.

Prime responsibility

The resettlement of the displaced civilians became the prime responsibility of the Government. Hence no sooner the Security Forces liberated original lands of these people, the Government machinery started rebuilding the areas making them fit for habitation. As a result of hard work and dedication the North is reverting to its former glory.

The resettlement of civilians displaced due to LTTE atrocities in the Northern Province was initiated first in Savariapuram in the Musali DS Division in Mannar. The Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services Ministry together with line ministries and other Government Agencies ensuring that the people are provided with all their basic needs, resettled 122 families comprising over 400 people in their original properties.

In the second phase the authorities resettled 2120 members of 561 families in seven GN Divisions - i.e. Maradamadu, Poonochchikulam, Pandaraweli, Koolamkulam, Sinnapulachchi Potkerny, Arippu West and Arippu East.

Yogarani and Nadar with their two younger daughter

Home Sweet Home

Number of people resettled per GN Division

Maradamadu - 242

Poonochchikulam - 75

Pandaraweli - 41

Koolankulam - 74

Sinnapulachchi

Potkerny - 124

Arippu West - 953

Arippu East - 611

"In the resettlement programs, we try to provide more than what the people had originally. It is not just resettling them in their homes! There is a mega development plan for the entire area," Chairman of the Presidential Task Force for 'Uthuru Wasanthaa' and Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa M.P. said attending this important event as its chief guest.

"You will be the first community to be resettled among the entire displaced people of the North and as the Government we are more than happy to see you back in your own houses. We are putting our maximum effort in bringing back your friends and relatives also to their original homes," MP Basil Rajapaksa assured.

Greater support

The entire Mannar District development programme received a block sum of 800 million rupees under the directive of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. It provides for the total resettlement program as well.

"We will develop the Musali as the first township that connects the North and the South," Rajapaksa stated.

Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services Minister Rishad Bathudeen remarked," These people were the first to get displaced and also the first to get resettled.

We have successfully conducted massive resettlement programmes in the East.

"The best development priority we were able to create was Vakarai. Even the best school of the entire Eastern Province is now in Vakarai. There was no electricity. But we managed to provide electricity even to the most remote rural areas in Vakarai. In the Easterern Province we resettled 95% of the displaced people within 9 months. And we are developing these areas more than that," he added.

These helpless people have lost almost all their meagre earnings. The families in Musali who are coming back to their original places of residence are to live in tents provided to them until their houses were repaired and made fit for habitation. Needs like cooking utensils are also provided for all families.

Aid organizations, INGOs and NGOs, are expected to play a greater role in helping civilians who have fled from the terrorists' clutches.

Priority

In addition to the physical resettlement of the displaced people of the North, the Resettlement Ministry was providing the people with means of livelihood development like providing tools for those engaged in carpentry, masonry or motor mechanism or seed material and agricultural implements for those who had cultivated paddy or other crops, Disaster Relief and Resettlement Ministry sources said.

"The Northern resettlement programme will closely follow the Eastern resettlement programme since the Government resettled more than 200,000 people in the East in a record short span of time which was a true success in a developing country like ours," a Ministry official said.The Government has provided funds for the people coming back to their old villages to repair and renovate some of the homes that were damaged. In addition to assistance to repair or rebuild their original homes civil administration had also been set up with Grama Niladharis already appointed and police stations functioning.

Bright hopes

The massive irrigation scheme, 'Yodha Weva' is also to be rehabilitated at a cost of Rs.380,000,000 provided by the World Bank. Roads from Medawachchiya to Mannar would also be developed to help people transport their agricultural produce to the market after the irrigation scheme was rehabilitated and cultivation in the region restarts.

Renovations to the road from Puttlam to Mannar through Eluvankulam will be completed soon. The Thalladi causeway, that connects the mainland with the Mannar island is almost completed. According to District Secretariat statistics in 2006, 19,685 families had been depending on the massive waters of the `Yodha Wewa'.

Apart from its economic value, this area is blessed with one of the fertile lands in the island. According to statistics available with the District Secretariat, in the year 2006 the total Mannar district recorded 47,958 metric tons of paddy harvest in the maha season. The Mannar district has the potential to produce a substantial yield of paddy harvest and high quality paddy seeds. When the people settle themselves and start their livelihood activities surely we will be able to see wonders on this blessed land.