Boost for Northern agricultural development
By KRISHMASWAMY
The Government has allocated Rs.61,000 million to the Jaffna district
to accelerate development projects, authoritative sources said. This
allocation includes the expenditure of Rs.20,000 million on the
Iranamadu Water Supply project for the entire Northern province. The
central government has also allocated another Rs.5,000 million to the
Northern Provincial Council under budget allocations for other
development activities in the province, the sources said. Another Rs.
1600 million has been earmarked for resettlement of displaced families
in the High Security Zones (HSZs).
In addition there are several projects that have their own funding
such as the Indian Housing Project, the Railway Track Restoration
Project, WB Housing Projects and NGO Projects, sources said.
Many of the programs which the Northern provincial administration
under Governor Maj. Gen. G.A. Chandrasiri will be implemented in the
current financial year and will be centered on improving the livelihood
of the people through promoting agricultural activities, such as the
cultivation of paddy and other food crops, Chief Secretary to the PC
R.Wijialudchumi told the Sunday Observer. Assistance from the provincial
administration, the central government and INGOs including the FAO will
be extended to farmers to pursue agricultural activities, she said.
FAO assistance, which will include seed paddy, fertiliser and minor
agricultural implements, will be extended to selected farmers throughout
the Northern province. Similar assistance will be extended to other
farmers in the province by the provincial administration and the
relevant central government ministries, mainly the Ministries of
Agriculture and Economic Development, she said.
A Rs.20 million project to improve chillie cultivation and other food
crops was launched last week and many more such projects are in the
pipeline. In the Mannar district, 700 families have been selected as a
first batch to receive agricultural assistance, the Chief Secretary
said. After the restoration of peace, many farmers in Jaffna resumed
grape cultivations.
Ilavalai, Vilan and Periyavilan are areas where grape cultivation is
now being undertaken on a large scale. A better market has now been
created for grapes in Jaffna. Incidentally, Maj. Gen. Chandrasiri last
week visited a garden with his wife Mrs. G.N. Chandrasiri and
symbolically joined the harvest.
He also promised to redress some of the problems of grape farmers,
sources said. Other ongoing projects started earlier with fund
allocations by the central government and the provincial administration
include far-reaching projects on irrigation, infrastructure , education,
transportation network, housing, health and sanitary facilities
resettlement and rehabilitation, authoritative government sources said.
Meanwhile, the meeting of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) for
Resettlement, Development and Security was held at the auditorium of the
Vavuniya District Secretariat on April 04 with the presence of Governor
Chandrasiri and Secretary to the PTF S.B.Divaratne. Commissioner of
Agrarian Services for Jaffna District Patrick Diranjan was also present
at the meeting.
The Government has admitted 2,000 internally displaced children
living outside welfare camps to 59 schools in Vavuniya and another 2,000
children deprived of education would be admitted to Gamini Maha
Vidyalaya in Vavuniya, according to authoritative provincial
administration sources. The Government has taken this step in an effort
to ensure access to all children of displaced families to education.
According to a recently conducted survey by provincial
administration, over 4,000 children of displaced families are yet to
resume formal education, sources said. A large number of GCE students of
displaced families resettled in their original homes facing problems of
transportation to schools have been given bicycles, the Northern
Province Governor said. The Education Ministry is in the process of
upgrading infrastructure facilities to all schools in the Northern
Province, sources said.
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