Indian PM describes tsunami as 'national tragedy', assures assistance

Describing the tsunami disaster as a "national tragedy", Indian Prime Minister (PM) Manmohan Singh Saturday assured the people of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, one of the worst-hit, of all possible central assistance to restart their lives.

On a day's visit, Singh went to relief camps in Campell Bay andNicobar promising a healing touch to victims who have lost their near and dear ones and found their sources of livelihood wiped out, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

"We will help to the maximum extent possible. We want to ensure that each affected family gets assistance from the center in terms of employment, education, housing and other basic necessities," PTI quoted Manmohan Singh as saying.

According to official estimates, 1,205 people have lost their lives in India's Andaman and Nicobar region. Over 42,000 people have been hit and 5,740 are reported missing. As many as 30 relief camps have been set up housing 11,239 victims.

Smashed boats, upturned and twisted rooftops and dazed looks of the affected people bore testimony to nature's wrath that has left many without houses, jobs and other means of livelihood.

Source: Xinhua