Far-reaching development- oriented programs:

Uva steals the limelight

By P. Krishnaswamy

The Vijayamuni Soysa Cultural Centre

The newly constructed Moneragala Secretariat building

The new Bibile Hospital building

Children's Hospital in Badulla

The Attampitiya-Badulla road during the construction process

Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva

Minister Dilan Perera

Former Uva Chief Minister Shasheendra Rajapaksa

Deputy Minister Muthu Sivalingam

SLFP chief organiser for Passara, Vadivel Suresh

The far-reaching development-oriented programs launched by the UPFA Government for the Uva province, encompassed virtually all sectors including infrastructure, agriculture, plantations, health, education, electrification, potable water, livelihood and socio-economic welfare of the people. Consequently all such sectors have registered tremendous improvement contributing to the transformation of the province as one now ahead of many other provinces in many respects. The province has been lagging behind in development and socio-economic standards for many years since Independence, but this situation is now fast changing, according to leaders of civil society organisations operating in the province. Bestowed with picturesque landscapes, many places of scenic beauty, blessed with nature's gifts and the Government's development programs gathering momentum, the province is fast re-gaining its past glory as a magnificent and prosperous region, much sought after by tourists , investors and entrepreneurs, observers said.

Minister of Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare and parliamentarian representing the Badulla district, Dilan Perera, told the Sunday Observer that under the tremendous development work carried out by the Government, the Badulla district is developing fast. Almost 90 percent of the electricity requirement has been provided with plans already in the pipeline, to provide the entire requirement in the near future. Renovation and rehabilitation of highways and by-roads with tarring, carpeting, asphalting and concreting have been completed almost 90 percent.

There are tea plantations in all divisional secretariat areas of the district, other than in Mahiyangana, and with the fertiliser subsidy and the planting/re-planting subsidy provided by the Government, tea export production and livelihood of the plantation communities have vastly improved, he said. The tea smallholders who contribute to 70 percent of the export tea production have over and again expressed their gratitude to the government for the subsidies and other assistance that they are receiving from the government, he said.

Vegetable and potato cultivators, who receive similar fertiliser subsidies like the paddy cultivators, are happy because they get a very good price for their products, the Minister said. Dairy farmers too are getting a good price for their milk and the industry has encompassed all areas of the district, including the plantations, he said. Programs have been implemented to provide clean water to the entire region and the year 2015 will be the year of 'Clean Drinking Water to the people of Badulla District' program, Minister Perera said.

In the educational sector, many projects have already been implemented for infrastructure development and many new school buildings have come up. Almost all schools have been developed under the program, Perera said, adding that GCE(O/L) and GCE(A/L) results and the standard of education have recorded a marked improvement, he said.

General Manager of the Tea Small Holdings Development Authority (TSHDA) M.B. Cyril said that there has been a big boost in export tea production in the Uva region due to the substantial fertiliser and planting/replanting subsidies provided by the Government. In the recent years the government has disbursed about Rs.30 Mn to tea smallholders in Badulla, Bandarawela and other tea producing areas in the Uva, he said. The government also disbursed to the tea smallholders of the province a total amount of Rs.32 Mn as drought relief, he said.

Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva's Coordinating Secretary in Badulla, Gunapala Illayapperuma told the Sunday Observer that much development work has been done in the health sector under the initiative of the Minister. The Badulla District Hospital has been upgraded and the Minister's request to make it a teaching hospital is now under consideration. Doctors' quarters were constructed during the Minister's previous tenure as Minister of Health and a well-equipped cancer unit was established in the Badulla Hospital at a cost of Rs. 8 billion, he said. A central drug stores for the entire region has been established and state-of-the-art CT scanning facilities have also been installed , he said. The estimated cost of Rs. 20,000 Mn for the establishment of the Uva Wellasa University has been approved by the Government. Illayapperuma said.

Under the development programs of the Provincial Chief Minister, former CM Shasheendra Rajapaksa has implemented several projects in the educational, agricultural and infrastructure sectors, according to his media unit in Badulla. With the lofty objective of creating a knowledgeable society, the Library Services Board has expanded its services from provincial level to school level.

The membership of public libraries has considerably improved in all areas where public libraries under the auspices of the PC are functioning, according to the media unit. The income from the Uva PC auditorium increased to Rs.1.6 Mn . Over 6000 graduate teachers and teaching assistants were recruited to address the problem of teacher shortage. A housing scheme program for teachers from other provinces has also been implemented. Two such schemes have already been started - one in Kodayana in Siyambalanduwa and the other in Ridimaliyada in the Badulla district. The teacher-student ratio in the province as of now is 1: 14 as against the national ratio of 1:18, the media unit of the former CM said.

Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) President and Deputy Minister of Economic Development Muthu Sivalingam said that they are supporting the UPFA in the upcoming Uva PC polls in appreciation and in reciprocation of the Government's huge contribution for boosting the plantation industry in the region and for improving the socio-economic conditions of the plantation community. The CWC's team of candidates, headed by former Uva Provincial Council Minister and Vice President of the CWC Senthil Thondaman, is contesting on UPFA tickets . The government gave to the Uva province a similar prominence as to the Nuwara Eliya region, the main hub of export tea production, for boosting and sustaining the industry.

State sector employment opportunities to educated plantation youths have been offered. The plantation areas were included in the Infrastructure development program of the government and all access roads to the tea estates have been rehabilitated or renovated. Under the Indian Government project of 4,000 houses for the plantation sector, 1,000 houses will be constructed in the Uva for deserving plantation families, the CWC President said. The plantation sector was encompassed under the education and health development programs of the government and there has been a marked improvement in these sectors, he said. State sector employments as teachers, Grama Niladharis and postmen were given to eligible plantation youth of the province. Educated and eligible youth of the province will also be given opportunities when 3000 new assistant teachers from the plantation sector are recruited in the near future,Sivalingam said. Electricity has been provided to the plantation workers of the region on a 60 percent subsidy basis through the combined efforts of CWC leader Arumugan Thondaman and Vice President Senthil Thondaman, he said.

SLFP Chief Organiser for the Passara constituency and President's Coordination Secretary Vadivel Suresh who is contesting as an SLFP candidate said that a huge amount was allocated for development of 12 schools in the plantation areas under the 'Mahindodaya Schools Development Program'. The Haldumulla Tamil Maha Vidyalayam, Haputale TMV, Poonagalla TMV, Bandarawela Graig Estate TMV, Kalapitikada-Balleketuwa TMV, Uva Highlands TMV, Badulla Saraswarthy TMV , Badulla Bharathy TMV, Lunugala Ramakrishna TMV, Madulsima TMV, Passara TMV and Gonakelle TMV are among the plantation schools which were benefited under the program. Many new school buildings were constructed and renovation works to several other schools were done, Suresh said.

Electricity has been provided to almost 98 percent of the plantation families of the province and under the infrastructure development program over 70 percent of the estate roads have been rehabilitated, he said. Housing schemes for the plantation community are to be implemented. Over 70 Hindu temples in tea estates have been rehabilitated/renovated under the religious and cultural development program of the Government, he said. About 98 Grama Niladhari appointments and 114 postman appointments have already been given to the plantation youths and the government is considering more such appointments, he said.