The Government yesterday announced that they have taken steps to resettle more Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), sheltered in the welfare villages in Vanni at the beginning of next month under the government's 180-day resettlement program.

'All the arrangements are now in place to resettle the displaced persons', said the senior advisor to the President, parliamentarian Basil Rajapaksa addressing a special meeting at Vavuniya District Secretariat yesterday.

According to Mr. Rajapaksa, the government plans to resettle 3,000 persons in 35 cleared villages in Wanni region beginning August 7th. The government has completed the demining activities of those villages with the assistance of international demining groups and the United Nations.

Sri Lanka government will provide all the basic requirements including dry rations to those displaced persons who are to be resettled next month, he said.

He reiterated his commitment to resettle at least 80 percent of the IDPs prior to the December-end deadline.