Bangladesh receives 270 tonnes of food aid for Rohingya refugees: Minister

Bangladesh has received 270 tonnes in food aid for Rohingya refugees from local and international organisations, while the government has allocated another 500 tonnes.

Over 400,000 Rohingyas, mostly Muslim, have fled Myanmar to escape a military offensive in response to insurgents' attacks on dozens of police posts and an army base on Aug 25.

The disaster management ministry said on Thursday that 424,000 Rohingyas have crossed the border into Bangladesh as of Sept 20.

"They have been kept in 14 camps and 5,575 of the new refugees have gone through biometric screenings," Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury told the media in Dhaka.

He said Bangladesh will help the Rohingyas until they return to Myanmar.

"The UNHCR has said it wants to provide supports such as, food, shelter and healthcare. The WFP has pledged food aid for 400,000 people for four months."

The public health engineering department is supplying 14 million litres of drinking water to the refugee camps every day, Chowdhury said, adding that 100 tube-wells and 500 toilets have been installed.

Four mobile water-treatment plants, capable of supplying 64,000 litres of safe water every 8 hours, have been also installed, said the minister.

The government has moved to gather the over 400,000 newly-arrived refugees in one place so aid can be distributed properly, he added.

As many as 14,000 sheds are being constructed on a 2,000-acre plot of land in Cox's Bazar's Kutupalong to house the refugees, said Chowdhury.

"We are considering the Rohingya issue on humanitarian ground. We are arranging new camps for them, even though it's tough for Bangladesh. But we are trying to ensure all kinds of support for the refugees."