Puthukkudiyiruppu junction is located 20 Kms from
Mullaithivu town. The junction houses a commercial area that serves the people of the region. The area
surrounding the junction has a dense settlement of people. After 1980, people from several other regions of the
Northeast were displaced to Puthukkudiyiruppu. Most of the displaced people were from, Mullaithivu, Manalaru, Kokkilai, Kokkuthoduvai, Karunaddukerni and Thennamaravadi villages who were forced out by
attacks of the Sri Lankan military, and Sinhala settlement supported by the same military.
In 1991, more than 1500 refugees were housed in the Subramaniuam Vidhyalayam School near Puthukkudiyiruppu.
On 30.01.1991, at 5.30 pm, Sri Lankan Air Force bombers dropped bombs around the Puthukkudiyiruppu junction. 20 bodies were recovered from the area. 50 people were taken to the hospital with injuries. Because the daylight was ending not all bodies could be recovered the same night. Seriously injured civilians were sent to the Jaffna hospital the same night. However, three of the injured died on the way to the Jaffna hospital. Five more bodies were recovered the next day. In total 28 people were killed in the bombing. 8 of those killed were displaced people. One of the full term mothers who jumped into a bunker to escape the bombing gave birth to a baby with damaged vertebra and is unable to walk.
Available names of victims (name, occupation, age)
1. Evisaiya Pathmarasa, Gov.officer, 37
2. Kandiah Jegatheeswaran, Student, 14
3. Kanthasamy Kavitha, Student, 14
4. Kathirgamachchadran, Fisherman, 26
5. Krishnasamy Mahenthirasa, Student, 20
6. Palasubramaniam, Private worker, 21
7. Pasupathy Arigaran, Student, 14
8. Mylvaganam Srikanthan, Private worker, 25
9. Murugesu Siththiravelu, Fisherman, 65
10. Jeyanathan Sivapakkiam, Private worker, 36
11. Selliah Nagamany, -, 60
12. Subramaniam Sivanantham, Farmer, 59
13. Sinnachsamy Kanthasamy, Private worker, 46
14. Sinnavan Krishnapillai, Farmer, 52
15. Sivarayasegaran Kalaichselvan, Student, 19
16. Veerakaththy Kiddinapillai, Farmer, 70
17. Veerasingham Thileepkumar, Student, 19