Govt sends largest consignment of relief supplies to IDPs

Amid conflicting reports of starvation amongst the Tamil civilians in the rebel-held areas in Sri Lanka's embattled North, the government has sent 500 metric tonnes of food for the displaced people in Wanni.

Amid conflicting reports of starvation amongst the Tamil civilians in the rebel-held areas in Sri Lanka's embattled North, the government has sent 500 metric tonnes of food for the displaced people in Wanni.

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Government sea freighter Win Tang left for Mulathivu with 500 MT of food and rations yesterday, with the biggest shipment dispatched since the beginning of the humanitarian war in the North so far, an official said.

The previous shipments have been less and were around 10-15 metric tonnes in relation to this shipments, Commissioner of Essential Services S B Divarathna said.

To deliver the food items in quick succession, several boats are kept waiting to carry the food ashore, the commissioner added.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa is of the view that present dispatches of items are not adequate for the innocent civilians and ordered bigger shipments to accelerate the process, he said.

Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa, the brother of the President, will personally supervise the process and expects to proceed with similar shipments twice a month in future.

ICRC expressed solidarity with government humanitarian efforts promising to extend its helping hand on site, an official statement said.