Nov 20, Colombo: India today handed over 80,000 parcels of relief material to the Red Cross to be distributed among the displaced Tamil civilians in the uncleared areas in the Wanni region of Sri Lanka.

At the handing over ceremony, Indian High Commissioner Alok Prasad said the material was to be distributed to the Internally Displaced Tamil persons of Northern Sri Lanka.

“As you will see, the consignment consists of food, clothing, and personal hygiene items which have been packed individually into 80,000 family packs for ease of distribution, and to ensure the assistance reaches directly to the intended recipients,” he said.

Thanking the High Commissioner and the Indian government, the International Committee of the Red Cross head of delegation Paul Castella said the items would be distributed directly to civilians by teams working in the Wanni areas.

“This is the first time that through the ICRC, government of India has assisted conflict-affected population of Sri Lanka and I would like to underline how much we appreciate the trust Indian authorities have shown in us and their recognition of ICRC's work in Sri Lanka to date,” he said.

Castella also thanked the Sri Lankan government for facilitating the arrival of this relief consignment to Colombo.