Kabul, Oct 4 (IANS): About 600 displaced Afghans, who were displaced by intense fighting in the months prior to the Taliban takeover, have returned to their homes in northern Badakhshan province from an Afghanistan-Tajikistan border area, provincial Governor Maulvi Amanuddin Mansoor said on Monday.

The returnees were displaced during clashes prior to the Taliban's takeover of capital Kabul ion August 15, Xinhua news agency quoted Mansoor as saying to reporters.

"They were living in a dire situation on an open ground. They returned after provincial officials ensured their security," he said.

Efforts are underway to help all displaced people return to their villages at an early date in the mountainous region as winter is approaching, according to the Governor.

The province fell to the Taliban on August 10.

Late last month, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that more than 6,35,000 people in Afghanistan were routed from their homes this year due to escalated violence, with over 12,000 displaced to Kabul.