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| Sunday, 23 April 2006 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Over 2000 tsunami affected families get relief A total of 2,425 tsunami affected families have been jointly benefited from the NDB fishermen's Relief Trust Fund receiving boats, engines and fishing equipment to the value of Rs. 97.74 million. These families mainly from the South and the East of Sri Lanka have been given boats and canoes as well as engines and nets-thereby helping the fishing communities to recover their means of livelihood. The districts covered include Galle, Matara, Hambantota, Kalutara and Colombo in the South and West, and Batticaloa, Ampara and Trincomalee in the East. The fund was set up immediately after the tsunami with a seed capital of Rs. 10 million given by the NDB Bank followed by another Rs. 100 million as the project progressed. With generous donations from both foreign and local associates and customers a sum of Rs. 101 million was raised for the project. A spokesman for the NDB Fishermen's Relief Trust Fund explained that at the initial stage, there was considerable difficulty in getting the required fishing boats and equipment. The demand was so great that the suppliers could not meet the demand. The Bank then launched a programme to help small-time entrepreneurs to set up boatyards. In Trincomalee, for example, a person who was repairing boats was selected and he was given facilities by the bank to expand. Today this is a thriving business. Similarly another person was helped to set up a boatyard at Ampara. Meanwhile, boatyards already in existence in the South were encouraged to expand. NDB branch staff as well as field officers visited each applicant and verified their needs and genuineness. They also made sure that the applicants had not received assistance from other sources.
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