India hands over 250 houses for Rohingya in Myanmar's Rakhine

India has handed over 250 prefabricated houses it built in Myanmar's Rakhine state as part of a broader effort to help tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to return, an Indian official said on Thursday.

A campaign by Myanmar's military in response to insurgent attacks in 2017 drove 730,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee to Bangladesh, where they live in squalid camps, fearing further persecution if they return.

Men work on a sign of India - Myanmar governments friendship project, before a handover ceremony, in Maungdaw, Rakhine, Myanmar, July 9, 2019. Reuters

But an Indian official said the conditions had to be created for the Rohingyas' return and India had started its $25 million development plan with a cluster of houses.

The houses, which were handed over to Myanmar authorities earlier this week, are in the villages of Shwe Zar, Kyein Chaung Taung and Nant Thar Taung.

Displaced Hindu people are pictured next to new houses, built by Indian and Myanmar governments friendship project, in Maungdaw, Rakhine, Myanmar, July 9, 2019. Reuters

Activists say that development projects in Rakhine will have little impact unless human rights issues are addressed.

The Indian official said Myanmar authorities had given New Delhi a list of 21 more projects for Rakhine, including schools and marketplaces.

Saurabh Kumar, Indian ambassador shakes hands with U Aung Kyaw Zan, Joint-chairman of Returnee Resettlement Work Committee and the Minister for Electricity, Industry, and Transportation of Rakhine State Government during a handover ceremony of new houses, built by Indian and Myanmar governments friendship project, in Maungdaw, Myanmar, July 9, 2019. Reuters

India has deepened ties with Myanmar in recent years, including military cooperation, as a way to push back against China’s expansive involvement in infrastructure development across south Asia.