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One Day Token Hunger Strike Called By ATS Port Blair/ Katchal, Oct. 23: The Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers brought under the Indo-Ceylon Pact of 1964 and settled in Katchal Islands today sat on a one-day token hunger strike at Tiranga Park, Port Blair and also at Mildera, Katchal. The hunger strike was backed by the Andaman Tamizhar Sangam which had earlier agreed to support the issue of the Tamil settlers.
“We demand equal rights as that given to other settlers in Andaman Islands who were brought from erstwhile East Pakistan”, said Shri Kalaiselvam, Secretary, Katchal Settlers’ Association who led the strike at Port Blair.
“Since years we have been demanding to re-locate us from the tribal land to any other area in the Andamans but the Administration never heeded to our prayer. The situation gradually deteriorated to such an extent that the settlers were even denied tribal passes to reach their homes”.
“We are grateful to the Tamizhar Sangam who supported us for our genuine cause”, Kalaiselvam said.
The Government of India, by a scheme under the Indo-Ceylon pact of 1964, had settled 48 Ceylon repatriates with their families in Katchal Island in the year 1974. They were originally employed by the Rubber Board and later by the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Forest Development Corporation Ltd. Each of the 48 settler families was allotted half an acre of land in Katchal Islands and they have been living there since then. Over the past 35 years, their population has increased to 173 extended families.
Post tsunami of 2004, a large extent of coastal land hitherto held by the tribal community has been lost due to permanent inundation of sea water. The tribal community has therefore demanded that the land now held by the Katchal Tamil settlers be transferred to them to make good the loss of land due to tsunami.
Instead of taking a confronting stand on this issue, the Tamil settlers agreed to be resettled to any suitable area in South Andaman, thereby paving way for a peaceful settlement of the issue. They have been representing to the Andaman and Nicobar Administration in this regard for the past couple of years. But unfortunately, the Andaman and Nicobar Administration has still not found any solution for this issue.
While other Settlers, who were settled in these Islands under various settlement schemes of the Government of India, were given adequate land and other benefits, Katchal Tamil settlers were given only half an acre of land. Unfortunately they have not been given any valid document for possessing this land and have not been provided with valid Certificates to substantiate their status as a ‘settler’.
Such biased attitude of the Andaman and Nicobar Administration has been strongly condemned by the Andaman Tamizhar Sangam who also felt that it is a breach of basic human rights.
The ATS had also appealed to the general public of the Islands to support the just cause of the Katchal Tamil Settlers and join the One Day Token Hunger Strike on 23rd October 2009. In response to the appeal of the Sangam, various political parties, unions and the general public joined today at Tiranga Park in support of the demands of the Katchal Settlers. |
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