Sri Lankan mountaineers to scale Mt. Everest

Sri Lanka Adventures Corps sent a team of ten members to scale the Mount Everest. This historic expedition was undertaken by a young team under the supervision of the Sports Ministry and this team left the island last week.

The team was expected to commence their expedition from the location where Sir Edmond Hilary - the first man to scale the mountain - began his historic adventure. The team has made arrangements to climb for 14 days to reach the peak which is at a height of 5,300 m. Then they hope to reach the first camp at a height of 6,100 m which no Sri Lankan has conquered yet.

This team comprises members of old boys from Colombo - Ananda, Thurstan, Kandy -Dharmaraja, Matara - Rahula, Galle - Mahinda and Ambalangoda - Dharmasoka Colleges.

They are Amila Siriwardene, Sanjaya Kumara, Dhammika Walisundera, Upul Kulasekera, Upul Deshapriya, Asanka Jayanath, Chanaka Premachandra, Amila Madurange, Pradeep Kumara and Nilantha de Soysa. Mount Everest is the highest mountain on Earth, as measured by the height above sea level of its summit, 8,848 metres (29,029 ft).

The mountain, which is part of the Himalaya range in High Asia, is located on the border between Sagarmatha Zone, Nepal, and Tibet, China.

Mt. Everest has two main climbing routes, the southeast ridge from Nepal and the northeast ridge from Tibet, as well as many other less frequently climbed routes.

Of the two main routes, the southeast ridge is technically easier and is the more frequently-used route.It was the route used by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953 and the first recognised of fifteen routes to the top by 1996.

Rare vine in Hawaii designated endangered species

A rare Hawaii vine has been added to the endangered species list, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said recently. It’s the second species to be classified as endangered by the Obama administration. The first was the reticulated flatwoods salamander, an amphibian native to south Georgia, north Florida and coastal South Carolina. It was put on the list last month.

The Hawaii plant is found only in the wet forests on the island of Molokai, 2,300 to 4,200 feet above sea level. The green vine’s loosely spreading branches often tangle in a large mass.The vine doesn’t have a common name, and is known only by its scientific name of Phyllostegia hispida.

Only 10 individual plants of the vine had been spotted between 1910 and 1996, the agency said.

It was thought to be extinct in 1997. But two seedlings were found at the Nature Conservancy’s Kamakou Preserve in 2005.

Since 2007, 24 wild plants have been discovered. A total of 238 plants are known to currently exist. Hawaii has 329 federally protected endangered species, more than any other state.

Northern railway line to open soon

The Northern railway line which has been defunct (not in use) for the past two decades due to the ethnic conflict in the country will be restored soon.

The government commenced the reconstruction of the Northern railway line from Vavuniya to Kankesanthurai via Jaffna and the railway stations in between, under the patronage of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

President Rajapaksa urged all patriotic citizens to assist in building the railway line, at the launch of the Colombo-Jaffna railway track extension project held at the President’s Office on March 23. Stating that the Yal Devi is a “Cultural Messenger”, he requested the Minister of Transport to run the train at least five kilometres beyond Vavuniya by April 23.

The estimated cost of the project is Rs. 5 billion and a National Secretariat will be set up in the Presidential Secretariat to streamline this project.

The Railways Department commenced the reconstruction work of the railway track from Vavuniya while the Army will carry out the reconstruction work from Jaffna. The Railways Department will provide technical assistance.

All Sri Lankans can join hands in providing manpower and wealth to reconstruct the line. The Northern rail track from Vavuniya to Kankesanthurai in Sri Lanka was severely damaged due to the destruction of infrastructure during the ethnic conflict in the last two decades. As a result, the Jaffna bound train from Colombo is currently operating only upto Vavuniya.

The British established the railway system in Sri Lanka in 1864. Presently the Sri Lankan Railway network consists of 1,508 kilometres with broad gauge track(five feet six inches, or 1.676m).

The railway contains some of the most magnificent scenic rail routes in the world. Particularly the Main Line winding through both natural beauties such as waterfalls, natural forest mountains, misty peaks and precipices, as well as man made festoons such as tea estates, pine forests and sensation engineering stuffs including bridges and peak level stations.

Holy week begins today

Catholics and Christians all over the world who were preparing for Easter Sunday, one of the most significant events in their religious calendar, during the lent season will enter into Holy Week today.

The Lent season is a time for change. It started on Ash Wednesday February 25 , forty days prior to Easter. Lent is a season where the suffering and death of Jesus Christ is remembered. The period ends joyfully with His rising from the dead in glory on Easter Sunday, April 12.

On Ash Wednesday the foreheads of those who attended church services were marked with ash to remind the followers that ‘born of dust we will return to dust’.

During Lent Catholics and Christians observe fasting and avoid feasting, don’t eat meats and rich foods during this period as a little sacrifice for Jesus, avoid going for parties and functions and instead meditate on how Jesus suffered and died for our sins. We are greedy for money and food.

We are indifferent to the poor and sick people. We don’t want to share what we have. We don’t even lend a hand to those who ask for our help. These are some of the sins we are doing everyday. Lent is a time to reflect on these wrong acts and do good.

We as humans do wrong, sometimes without much thinking. But we have to show we are sorry and apologise. We have to promise never to do wrong and stand by our word of promise.

The Holy Week starts today Palm Sunday. It marks the event where Jesus was greeted at the gates of Jerusalem by the people waving palm branches. Holy week commemorates the most agonizing period of Jesus’ life.

On Monday, Thursday, the evening before the Jewish Feast of Passover, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples to show us that we must be humble at heart and not proud. A good leader will always be the servant of his people.

Good Friday, is the day Jesus died for our sins on the cross in Calvary. Lent is the time to change our bad ways and bad habits.

A time to change into a wonderful person who will bring happiness to people who meet you, talk to you, and work in class with you. Isn’t it wonderful to have people remember you as someone special, someone nice to be with and someone who cares?

Look at how mush Jesus cared for each of us? He cared so much He even suffered and died for us. There is nothing He would not do for those who believe in Him. Lent is a time to say ‘thank you’ to Jesus for all He has done and is doing for you everyday.

- Charmaine Fernando

News briefs

* The government intends to plant rubber in 1,000 hectares of land this year, according to the Minister of Plantations, D.M. Jayaratne. Isolated jungle areas in the Moneragala district have already been identified for this purpose. Rubber will also be planted in Anuradhapura and Hambantota districts.

* The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) and All Ceylon Government Medical Officers Association (ACGMOA) warned of the country’s entire immunisation programme being jeopardised following the death of twelve-year-old Peshala Hansani after the rubella vaccination.

* Health Ministry officials claim that between 8,000 to 11,000 new tuberculosis (TB) patients are discovered from the country every year.

At present, there are about 17,000 patients in the country.

* An islandwide census of archaeologists is to be conducted by the Sri Lanka Council of Archaeologists.

* A new highway from the historical Seruwila Mangala Rajamaha Viharaya to the Somawathie Dagoba is to be built shortly.

The Seruwila Rajamaha Viharaya has been declared as a World Heritage site. The new highway will reduce the distance from the Seruwila Rajamaha Viharaya to Somawathie Dagoba, from drastically. It will also reduce the travelling distance from Trincomalee to Badulla.

Birth and death anniversaries from April 5 -11

April 5

Ehelepola Maha Adikaram died in Mauritius, in 1829.

Death of Ananda Samarakoon, composer of the National Anthem in 1962.

April 7

Birth of William Wordsworth, English poet in 1770.

April 8

Death of Pablo Picasso, Spanish painter in 1973.

April 9

Death of Sir Francis Bacon, English writer in 1626.

April 10

Birth of William Booth, Founder of the Salvation Army in 1826.

Birth of Joseph Pulitzer, `Father of modern American journalism’ in 1847.

Death of Evelyn Waugh, English novelist in 1966.

April 11

Death of Sunil Shantha popular Sinhala singer in 1981.

Special events which took place in history, from April 5 -11

April10

* The Sarasaviya, the Sinhala weekly, commenced publication in 1963.