Sri Lankan Tamils in India

In general socio economically they are living below poverty line, except few people who settled in India during early times, rich businessmen, and professionals.

[5] In 1964, a pact was signed between Bandaranaike and the then Indian Prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri to repatriate much of the population of the stateless Tamils.

Over the next 30 years, successive Sri Lankan governments were actively engaged in deporting over 300,000 Tamils back to India.

[6] Most of the Tamils, who were repatriated, settled in various parts of Tamil Nadu, while a few hundred families have settled in Punalur taluk of Kollam district in Kerala, and in Sulya and Puttur taluks of Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka where a majority of them work in tea and rubber plantations.

On 20 January 1992, after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi 54,188 refugees were voluntarily repatriated to Sri Lanka, until March 1995.

Highest number of Sri Lankan Tamil families living in KK Nagar, Thuvakudi in Trichirapalli, Neelankarai, Valasaravakkam in Chennai, Nagercoil in Kanniyakumari, R.S puram, Valparai in Coimbatore.

The third group consisted of those who supposedly posed security threats since they were involved in subversive activities in Sri Lanka.

India's continued refusal to sign protocols and also the ban on NGOs prevent any international help from reaching the refugees.

This entitles them to government assistance-cash, shelter, health facilities, clothing and provision of essential items.

The refugees from Sri Lanka have been the recipients of one of the most advanced systems of education in the world, but since 1991, this privilege has been withdrawn.

It is due to the assassination of former Indian Prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991 by a suspected member of the LTTE.