Indian citizenship for Sri Lankan refugees?

The central government will consider Tamil Nadu's request to grant Indian citizenship to Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in the state, central minister Kiren Rijiju said on Tuesday.

The minister of state for home visited a refugee camp near Chennai and told the media that the central and state governments were taking several measures to promote the welfare of refugees.

Rijiju said the central government would consider the recommendation of the Tamil Nadu government on granting Indian citizenship to the refugees.

A section of the refugees are linked to the now vanquished Tamil Tigers.

An estimated 100,000 Sri Lankan Tamil refugees now live in designated camps in Tamil Nadu, which has played host to hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankan Tamils since ethnic conflict erupted there in 1983.

Tamil Nadu is separated from Sri Lanka by a narrow strip of sea. - IANS