Three-member committee to devolve power to East

by P. Krishnaswamy

[email protected]

President Mahinda Rajapaksa will shortly appoint a high level three-member committee to address the issue of devolution of powers to the Eastern Provincial Council in terms of the 13th Amendment, Minister of Social Service, Roads and IT Education of the Council M.L.A.M. Hisbullah told the Sunday Observer.

President’s Secretary Lalith Weeratunga told the Sunday Observer that the process of appointing members to the high level committee to coordinate the process of vesting all stipulated powers to the Council has already begun and that the committee would be appointed in a few days.

PC Minister Hisbullah said that several shortcomings and delays that were experienced by the Council, since its inception eight months ago, with regard to streamlining administrative powers were satisfactorily sorted out at a recent meeting in Colombo chaired by Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa MP, he said.

The meeting convened under the direction of the President was attended by several Cabinet Ministers, Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan, key ministers of the Eastern PC and high government officials, Hisbullah said. At the three-hour meeting discussions took place on a wide range of subjects, including administrative matters, recruitment and fund allocations for development work as well as resettlement of displaced people and important decisions were arrived at, he said. For the first time, a senior DIG (DIG Shankar) has been appointed in overall charge of the three districts of the province to work in coordination with the CM and the PC administration, the PC Minister said.

Referring to the incidents of abductions, killings, threats and other forms of violence that have been taking place in the province in the recent weeks, he said, that ‘certain anti-social elements’ bent on destabilising civil administration and inciting communal conflicts were behind such incidents.

The PC administration was mobilising all its resources and powers to identify and deal with such elements to restore normalcy in the province, he said.

Outlining the development programs envisaged for the eastern province, Hisbullah said, “Primarily we want to focus on major irrigation projects to bring all uncultivated paddy lands under cultivation in an effort to double paddy production in the province. Hitherto 40,000 acres were under cultivation catering to 16 per cent of the total requirement of the country. We now want to bring 85,000 acres under paddy cultivation to provide 25 per cent of the national requirement of rice. Providing tractors free to the farmers ploughing paddy fields, manure and fertiliser at subsidised prices and other facilities, including distribution of seed paddy, would be extended.

“Construction and renovation of roads and resettlement of people, displaced due to the war, will be the other major projects that will be launched in the near future.

“We hope to achieve a marked economic progress in the next six months as a consequence of the many development programs that are to be implemented in the province.