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| Sunday, 6 March 2005 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Keeping Sri Pada clean
The Sri Pada or Adam's Peak in the Ratnapura district (Sabaragamuwa Province) is considered important by all four major religions in Sri Lanka. January and February are the favourite months for the annual pilgrimage which starts in December and continues until the Vesak Poya in May. You too may be getting ready to make the pilgrimage this season. You could be a first-timer or a seasoned pilgrim, but one thing that you must keep in mind while you are there, is to leave the surroundings clean without contributing to the pollution that is already severe in the area. When we visit areas which are frequented by visitors, we realise how they have been subjected to pollution. Polythene bags and wrappers, plastic and glass bottles are thrown everywhere. These ruin the beauty of the environment and clog waterways. Broken glass can cause injuries, while thousands of wild animals have died as a result of consuming polythene. The Environment and Natural Resources Ministry has now launched a programme to protect the Sri Pada mountain from pollution by pilgrims. Youth from the Sri Lanka National Youth Forum Council have been trained to educate pilgrims on the repercussions of pollution, and to remove the non-degradable material such as polythene and plastic from the area. Around 200 young men and women will be engaged in this task during the season. This is certainly a commendable move and should be encouraged by all. While the government is taking action in this regard, you too can make a start in reducing pollution. If you are in such an area, throw all unnecessary things such as food wrappers into the garbage bins that are provided. If these are not available, keep the throwaways with you until you find an allocated dumping site. The Sri Pada is a sacred place for all of us in this island. We should make an effort to keep it that way without making it an ugly garbage dump. ############# A new beginning for Lankagama students
The Lankagama Primary School in Neluwa, Galle was ceremonially opened recently by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga. The school, which was completely damaged and washed away during the floods of May 2003, was rebuilt by the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd. (ANCL-Lake House) at a cost of Rs. 13 million, under its social service programme. The school, which is in a remote area, lost all its buildings and documents in the floods, resulting in the disruption of the education of its students. They had to continue their studies in temporarily built huts at a temple. The students found it extremely difficult to continue their studies, without a proper school building and other facilities. It was then that the ANCL stepped in and volunteered to rebuild the school. The new Lankagama Model School, as the school will now be called, is a fully equipped modern school. The two-storeyed building constructed by ANCL will house classrooms from Grades 1 to 11, a laboratory and a library. It is built in an area of 13,000 square feet. The new teachers' quarters and the playground were provided by the Southern Provincial Council. The playground, which cost Rs. 2.5 million, was symbolically handed over to the students by ANCL Chairman, Janadasa Peiris, who was present on the occasion. The school currently has 200 students and 11 teachers including the Principal. Several other institutions in the education field, as well as the residents of Lankagama provided assistance to make this school a modern educational institution. ########### Happy Hands Art is something with which you can express yourselves. Through art, you can give voice to your thoughts and feelings, and make yourselves understood. It could be a source of joy for you as well as others. The Grade 1 and 2 students of Lyceum International School, Nugegoda got an opportunity to express themselves through art when the 'Happy Hands' exhibition was organised by the school recently. The arts and crafts exhibition was held at the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery in Colombo. The range of exhibits on display was unlimited, and spoke volumes about the talent and creativity of these young children. ############ Brother, sister duo stage art exhibition
The first art exhibition of Mantha Abeysekera, a Grade Four student of Royal Institute International Primary School in Colombo, will be held at the Art Gallery on March 12 and 13. Chairman of the school, G.T. Bandara will be the chief guest at the opening. Mantha, who celebrates his 10th birthday on March 15, will be joined at the exhibition by his sister, Isini, who is a pre-grader at the same school. Together they will exhibit over 100 paintings. Mantha and Isini plan to sell their creations to raise funds to help children of their own age who were affected by the recent tsunami. Their intention is to restore a primary class in a tsunami-affected school in the Southern Province. The brother and sister duo have been getting ready for the exhibition for over an year, under the guidance of their art teacher, the versatile contemporary artist Prabath Samarasooriya. Some of his latest creations too will be exhibited at the event. Under Samarasooriya, Mantha and Isini have been learning to handle the brush, crayons, water colours and fabric paints, and other techniques, for the past one year. They were trained to think and create their own form of art which they feel comfortable with. Their own thoughts put into paintings through their own style will be
displayed at the exhibition.
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The annual Sri Pada pilgrimage season is now on. 
