JOIN USUP ignores Centre's demand for relief camp report
The Centre has sought a report from the Uttar Pradesh government on the death of children in the relief camps for riot victims in Muzaffarnagar but the state has not responded despite repeated reminders.
The Union Home Ministry wanted a report following media reports about death of children in the camps which were set up after the communal riots in Muzaffarnagar August this year.
Though a state government inquiry found last week that at least 34 children died in the relief camps in the past couple of months, it has not communicated to the Centre about the incidents.
A senior official said they sent four letters since December 8 and the latest one on Monday.
The Ministry had asked the state about the number of children who have died so far, the reasons for the deaths and the steps taken to prevent further casualties.
Condition of camp
It is alleged that the condition of children and elders in these camps is pathetic.
The National Human Rights Commission team which visited the camps had in October itself highlighted the pathetic conditions in them and asked the state government to ensure better facilities.
Following the deaths of children, the NHRC had also sought a report from the state government.
Officials said around 4,700 people are still living in five relief camps in the area — at Loi in Muzaffarnagar district and at Madarsa Taimul Shah, Malakpur, Barnavi and Edgah in Shamli district.
Most of the children who lost their lives were those who had been taken outside the camps for treatment by their parents or were referred to government hospitals, the UP government had claimed.