This is an archive article published on April 8, 2022
Family of four sail to Rameswaram coast from Sri Lanka amid ongoing crisis
After reports of 16 Sri Lankan refugees reaching India made international headlines, the navy had tightened vigil on the international waters as a refugee crisis would be the last thing that the Sri Lankan government would want to deal with amid the ongoing economic struggle.
A family of four, including two children, fleeing Sri Lanka amid the economic crisis followed by unrest landed at Dhanushkodi in Rameswaram on Friday morning, the police said.
According to the cops, fishermen in the area alerted them after they spotted the family and their boat near the shore.
“They are being shifted to the Mandapam camp. Further steps will be decided after the state intelligence and central agencies complete their procedures,” an officer said. The family sailed to the shore in Tamil Nadu on a fibre boat. They had told the local officials that they had started sailing from the Jaffna coast in the north of Sri Lanka.
Around 16 people have reached Rameswaram in the last month in two boats, all from Mannar, south of Jaffna.
On Friday morning, a source in Mannar said that at least 15 refugees, who were trying to flee the country, were taken into custody by the Sri Lankan navy on Thursday night. “The family that reached India might be the one which managed to escape the navy patrol,” he added.
After reports of 16 Sri Lankan refugees reaching India made international headlines, the navy had tightened vigil on the international waters as a refugee crisis would be the last thing that the Sri Lankan government would want to deal with amid the ongoing economic struggle.
On Thursday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin apprised the Centrethat his state was ready to ship essential commodities, like rice and life-saving drugs, to Sri Lanka, considering the welfare of the Tamils there. Seeking permission for its distribution through the Indian High Commission, Stalin spoke over a call with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and expressed his deep concern over the plight of the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
Arun Janardhanan is an experienced and authoritative Tamil Nadu correspondent for The Indian Express. Based in the state, his reporting combines ground-level access with long-form clarity, offering readers a nuanced understanding of South India’s political, judicial, and cultural life - work that reflects both depth of expertise and sustained authority.
Expertise
Geographic Focus: As Tamil Nadu Correspondent focused on politics, crime, faith and disputes, Janardhanan has been also reporting extensively on Sri Lanka, producing a decade-long body of work on its elections, governance, and the aftermath of the Easter Sunday bombings through detailed stories and interviews.
Key Coverage Areas:
State Politics and Governance: Close reporting on the DMK and AIADMK, the emergence of new political actors such as actor Vijay’s TVK, internal party churn, Centre–State tensions, and the role of the Governor.
Legal and Judicial Affairs: Consistent coverage of the Madras High Court, including religion-linked disputes and cases involving state authority and civil liberties.
Investigations: Deep-dive series on landmark cases and unresolved questions, including the Tirupati encounter and the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, alongside multiple investigative series from Tamil Nadu.
Culture, Society, and Crisis: Reporting on cultural organisations, language debates, and disaster coverage—from cyclones to prolonged monsoon emergencies—anchored in on-the-ground detail.
His reporting has been recognised with the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism.
Beyond journalism, Janardhanan is also a screenwriter; his Malayalam feature film Aarkkariyam was released in 2021. ... Read More
