Five Tamil SL refugees drown in mid-sea after boat capsize

Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, May 20 (UNI) Five Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka drowned in mid-sea after their boat capsized off the Indian coast, last night.

The boat, which left Talaimannar carrying 20 people, reportedly flipped over due to overload, Coast Guard sources here said.

Coast Guard personnel rescued 15 other refugees, who were battling for life and brought them to shore in two mechanised boats.

Meanwhile, 71 more Sri Lankan refugees, including 29 women and 12 children, arrived here today.

The refugees belonging to 24 families were from Trincomalee, Killinochchi, Jaffna and Kodikamam areas, official sources said.

With this, a total of 945 refugess have arrived in Tamil Nadu since January last, following hostilities between the Lankan army and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

All the refugees had been sheltered in the refugee camp at Mandapam after verification.

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