Sverdlovsk: Money needed to care for refugees

Government officials in Sverdlovsk Oblast are concerned that the federal government is expecting them to take in up to 1500 displaced persons from Chechnya but has not transferred any funds to defray the costs of providing temporary housing, "Vremya MN" reported on 9 December. The oblast is one of the 45 regions that have been assigned to receive displaced persons from Chechnya; recently, its assigned quota of refugees was increased three-fold from 500 to 1500. According to the newspaper, the federal government had allocated some 147 million rubles ($6 million) to ensure suitable living conditions for the refugees. However, the oblast has received only telegrams from Moscow with orders to prepare appropriate accommodations. JAC