Large crowds expected for Esala perahera

by Jayamapthy JAYASINGHE

Large crowds are expected in Kandy town during the Esala perahera, following the peaceful atmosphere that prevails in the country. However, police will take adequate measures to provide security to those who attend the historic pageant next month, Senior DIG Gamini Navaratne of the Central Range told the Sunday Observer .

He said around 6,000 policemen will be deployed during the perahera season to provide security and other related duties such as traffic control as a large number of vehicles is also expected to converge in the Kandy town. Several car parks have been set up within and outside the Kandy town to accommodate buses and coaches bringing people. The main bridges leading to the Kandy town will also be illuminated and several road blocks too have been set up as a security precaution, he said. The Senior DIG has appealed to the public to desist from littering the Kandy town. “People should not throw polythene bags and paper all over the place which poses a big problem for the Kandy Municipality.

They should take away the polythene bags and newspapers they bring in as far as possible. Each year several tons of garbage pile up in the Kandy town following the festivities,” he said.Deputy Minister of Tourism, Faiser Musthafa said that they expect over 5,000 tourists which is the highest in recent times. “Soon after the war we launched a series of promotions for the pageant which have been successful,” he said.The Minister said that in addition to tourists, the Sri Lankan diaspora and people from all over the island are expected to witness the event in large numbers this year. “We expect a record number,” he said. He said soon after the war the number of tourist arrivals picked up in June showing an 8 percent increase.”This is a major take off,” he said.

The Ministry too would play a key role by providing water and other sanitation facilities to the public. “We do this annually,” he said.