Amid economic crisis, six Sri Lankans caught entering India illegally

Six Sri Lankan nationals who allegedly tried to enter the country illegally – they stranded before being rescued by the Coast Guard on Tuesday – are being interrogated, officials have told news agency PTI. Three of the six are children, officials added. The Sri Lankans attempted to land at Dhanushkodi in Tamil Nadu but the man who brought them here illegally forced them to disembark and left them stranded on a sand dune, officials said.

One of the Sri Lankans claimed they were trying to enter India because of the economic crisis in Sri Lanka. Increasing prices of essential goods was making it difficult to manage the situation back home, PTI quoted her as saying.

What is happening in Sri Lanka?

Sri Lanka is battling a foreign exchange crisis that has forced a currency devaluation and hit payments for essential imports like food, medicine and fuel.

The country has turned to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for help.

Army drafted in to control crowds at fuel stations

On Tuesday the Sri Lanka government posted soldiers at hundreds of state-run petrol stations to quell panic and ration fuel after a sharp spike in prices.

READ: Sri Lanka sends army to petrol stations amid worst fuel crisis in 70 years

The increase in prices has forced tens of thousands to queue for hours for key commodities, and the decision to deploy troops near petrol pumps and kerosene supply points came after three elderly people dropped dead while waiting.

READ: As economic crisis worsens, two men die in queue for fuel

Deployment of the Army was in response to complaints of stockpiling and inefficient distribution, a government said, adding, “Military has been deployed to help the public, not curtail their human rights.”

School exams cancelled

Last week the government cancelled exams for millions of school students as the country ran out of printing paper. Education authorities said term tests were postponed indefinitely due to the acute paper shortage.

Term tests are part of a continuous assessment process to decide if students are promoted to the next grade at the end of the year.

Official sources said the move could effectively hold up tests for around two thirds of the country’s 4.5 million students.

READ: Amid economic crisis, Sri Lanka cancels exams over paper shortage

Peoples’ reaction

“The government has to provide solutions. There is too much hardship and suffering,” Seetha Gunasekera, a Colombo resident, told Reuters, “Prices have increased and we are barely able to manage with what we earn daily.”

What is the economic crisis?

The rapid drain of Sri Lanka’s dollars has left it struggling to pay for critical imports as currency reserves have slumped 70 per cent in the last two years to $2.31 billion.

However, Sri Lanka has to repay about $4 billion in debt in the rest of this year, including a $1-billion international sovereign bond that matures in July.

Ahead of IMF talks in Washington in April, the government said it would hire a global law firm to provide assistance on debt restructuring to fight the crisis.

With input from PTI, Reuters