Railway to evict 250 squatters in Jaffna

by Ananth PALAKIDNAR

The Rai lway Department with the assistance of the Government Agent, Jaffna has taken steps to evacuate over 250 squatters occupying Railway property in the Jaffna peninsula.

A top level team of Railway Engineers led by Superintendent V. Amaratunge visited Jaffna to evaluate the damage caused to the CGR in the past three decades.

Engineer Amaratunge told the Sunday Observer that a Herculean task lay ahead of the CGR in rebuilding the railway in Jaffna.

"The CGR team of engineers had travelled 59 kms from Kankesanthurai to Palai to conduct a feasibility study on relaying the rail tracks to the peninsula.

We found that 250 squatters had occupied the areas where the railway tracks were in the past.

The squatters had also occupied the railway stations in Inuvil and Kondavil.

Therefore, the CGR has sought the assistance of the Government Agent, Jaffna to evict those encroachers from the railway property", Amaratunge said.

He said that fourteen substations and fourteen main stations including the Jaffna Railway station have to be reconstructed on the Northern line.