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| Sunday, 22 September 2002 |
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Letters |  |
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Please forward your letters to [email protected] in plain text format within the e-mail message, since as a policy we do not open any attachments.
Western music department in a mess A vast number of GCE (O) Level students offer Western Music as a subject for the examination. Enthusiastic parents get their children further trained under qualified private music teachers. It is the responsibility of parents to obtain application forms and ascertain the scheduled date of the public music examination. Department of Music Examinations is situated in Battaramulla. Parents trek this "Way of the Cross" journey all the way to this "Mulla", just to get tossed from pillar to post and post to pillar as none of the staff seems to know anything about the publication of last year's music results nor have they heard about examination closing dates. Bewildered parents remained non-plussed when a male clerk gibbed "Music is not the food of love" in this department and pop replied a female clerk "dates" from Arab countries we eat here, but dates scheduled for Examinations in Western Music we know not. This is the care-free treatment the public servants receive from the department where "The mice are at play". Authorities please look into this matter. C. L. TERENCE FERNANDO, The 144th anniversary of the Sri Lanka railway or the former CGR and its history that appeared in the Sunday Observer of August 25 under Reader's Forum needs an important addition to complete it. The railway extension from Colombo upto Kalutara South was completed in 1879 on schedule. But the extension from there to Alutgama was completed in 1890, with a record delay of 11 years, where Queen Victoria comes into the history of CGR. It was due to the sacred Bo tree or Kalutara Bodhiya as now known which stood as an obstruction to build the track beyond Kaluganga. The engineer's decision was to cut down the Bo tree. It proved no easy task as Kalutara Buddhists rose against the engineer's decision. The Asst. Govt. Agent's residence and the Kachcheri were all there near the Bo tree and the AGA being a Christian took no notice of the Buddhist-uprising. The Buddhists then applied to the G.A.W.P. who stated that he was helpless in the matter. The Kalutara Buddhists then appealed to the Governor. His reply was the same. As the last resort they rushed to the Most Ven. Waskaduwe Sri Subhuti Thera Maha Nayake of Amarapura Nikaya who was living close by and stated their predicament. The Maha Nayaka said it was very simple and asked them not to worry. He sent for Maha Mudaliyar Louis de Zoysa and the necessary petition was prepared in the same night and forwarded it to Queen Victoria with a copy to the Crown Prince who became King Edward the VII later. The Maha Nayaka and the Prince were good friends after having met him at the Queen's House in Sri Lanka in 1875. The order from Queen Victoria came sooner than expected stating "Do not touch the Bo Tree". After that the railway to the South proceeded most respectfully bending away from the Sacred Bo tree. Similar trouble arose over the Bo tree at the Amlabangoda railway station site. But the timely warning from the Garumuni Walawwa avoided it, creating a double bend for rail track between the Ambalangoda railway station and the bridge over Madampe river. W. L. PIERIS, Brian Jansz's letter on "Vagaries of Advertising and Publicity", published in your issue of August 18 states that howlers are committed only by natives when they prepare signboards in English, and that too to the ordinary individual. It becomes very much worse when government institutions are guilty of such howlers. A glaring example is an institution which seems to train "apprenticeship!" (not apprentices). If one keeps looking to one's left, travelling from Moratuwa towards Colombo, right at the heart of Katubedda bazaar one cannot miss a giant-sized sign board which reads, "Apprenticeship Training Institute"! What is worse is that the Sinhala version is also a direct translation of the erroneous English version. One need not be a Sinhala scholar to observe that it has been obvious to me only a fourth grade proficiency certificate holder. The board has been staring at one's face from the time the institution was set up, uncorrected in spite of earlier references to the howler in the press. To say the least, it is a disagrace to Moratuwa where many an English and Sinhala scholar has come from. C. S. A. FERNANDO, 'Rude female security at a Western Embassy' After reading the article in a recent Sunday Observer, like many, I too went to this western embassy to collect a set of DVD Lottery forms. I was delighted to find no crowd at the counter. So happily I requested the female security on duty at the counter for a set of forms. To my amazement, she looked disdainfully and flicked her fingers (belive me, I am not exaggerating!!) - indicating me to move towards the wall! OK, I don't have a great face but no one has complained before this so very rudely. I did not move but stood silently to see what she will do next. Then, seven or eight executives walked in. They all politely requested for the forms. 'Her highness' continued her "I will give when I feel like look" and rudely ignored them too. Like me, they too were stunned into silence - not out of a lack of words - but in sheer amazement at her arrogance and rudeness! Does it cost or kill this female security officer to be polite? After all we came there only to ask for a form and not for her signature! We would most appreciate if diplomacy at this Embassy begins at the gate! It is indeed sad and pathetic that our own citizens behave in this deplorable and disgusting manner. Over to you Mr. Ambassador for prompt action. Hope you too won't make excuses for your members like some of our politicians do.!! Concerned Citizen, The use of plastic in Sri Lanka is on the increase despite several drawbacks. Foreign countries have taken adequate steps to control this menace (recently, The Tamil Nadu Government banned the usage of plastic). The main reasons for the continuous increase the use of plastic are as follows: 1. Cheap when compared with other raw materials, such as metal etc. Plastic could be categorized in the following manner: a) Poly Ethylene - eg: Light plastic hags Toys made out of PVC are dangerous to small children who bite and chew them, due to the chemicals mixed in it. Recently, it was discovered in India that children are suffering from kidney problems due to these PVC toys. Plastic items cannot be destroyed either by burying or dissolving. When burnt, there is possible emission of Dioxine gas which causes cancer. It is a threat to the environmental health condition. Foreign countries though discourage the use of plastic products in their countries, conveniently send their plastic products to Sri Lanka by way of complimentary and low cost items. The Government should take constructive steps to control the inflow. I am rather relieved to learn that recently in India it has been discovered that plastic could be mixed with tar and used for road construction. These roads have been proven to be in commendable conditions. We could also recycle used plastic and mix them with tar for our road construction. I suggest our Government take steps to look into this mater so that we could convert the use of plastic in a constructive manner. S.R. Balachandran, A bank for sainthamaruthu - a must Sainthamaruthu is a fast developing commercial area under the Kalmunai Municipal Council. It comprises seventeen G.S. divisions and nine wards in the Municipal Council. There is a separate Divisional Secretary's Division, an M.P.C.S., a main post office and a fully equipped basic hospital for this area. The oldest market in this location had been turned into a modern market complex. There is also an Agriculture Productivity Centre to serve the farmers of this area. A separate educational circuit too established in this area very recently. The Kalmunai-Ampara (K.A.I.) main road passing through this area had become a busy commercial bazaar and the business turn over had multiplied rapidly. Yet there is no bank in this area to provide banking facilities to the residents. The businessmen, the government servants, the pensioners and the general public have to travel daily to other places for their banking transactions. There are several schools, government offices and private institutions in this area and the payment of salaries of their staff and other monetary transactions are hindered due to the absence of a bank - causing immense inconveniences to the staff as well as to the establishments and the public. Hence it is suggested that the authorities concerned must look into this shortcoming and to upgrade the present pawning centre of the people's bank at Sainthamaruthu into a full fledged branch without further delay in order to relieve the hardship faced by residents of this area. A bank in this area would accelerate more cash flow - which in turn would lead to more business activities and generate ample employment opportunities and as a whole pave the way for eonomic prosperity of residents. Sainthamaruthu Latmeer |
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