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.