Distribution of ration in the three CHT districts -- Rangamati, Khagrachhari and Bandarban -- resumed on October 25 as per a directive from the prime minister, official sources said.

Earlier in July, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) had asked the CHT affairs ministry to stop ration for 65,000 indigenous refugees of 12,222 families and rehabilitate them permanently.

The PMO however asked the ministry to continue ration for 26,000 Bangalee families in cluster villages in the CHT.

Stoppage of ration led to agitation, road barricade and strike by the refugees.

The prime minister then asked the CHT affairs ministry to provide them ration from its emergency stock.

A high official at the ministry however said, "It is not possible to fully meet the refugees' food grain requirement from the emergency stock. Hardly can we meet half of their annual requirement."

Ministry sources said in the first phase, 3,778 tonnes of food grain will be distributed among the refugees. Their annual requirement is 15,300 tonnes but the emergency stock has 8,000 tonnes.

Previously, the refugees used to get five kilograms of rice for an adult and two and a half kilograms for a child a week.

The refugees returned from the camps in the Indian state of Tripura following the CHT peace treaty in 1997 and mainly depend on ration as most of them were not rehabilitated properly.

According to official statistics, 3,055 families out of 12,222 are yet to get back their homesteads.

The process of rehabilitation was stalled after the four-party coalition government took office, leaders of the indigenous people alleged.