4 Thursday 27th November, 2008 The Island Home News Tamil, Muslim grievances Military offensive won’t be halted – Govt. would be addressed after by Harischandra Gunaratna truth in this,” he said. ernment has not made any attempt to Defence Spokesman said. war is over Defence Spokesman and Minister Rambukwella said the government’s stop the food items being sent to those During the last two decades the Keheliya Rambukwella yesterday prime concern was about the IDP’s. areas Rambukwella said. inhabitants in the area had to take the – Jeff Gunawardena vowed that the government will contin- Essential items are being sent to the The government of the had initial- risk of travelling in boats through sea ue its military offensive against the areas where the displaced are living ly allocated Rs 500 million for the re- routes and that was costly as there was by Zacki Jabbar LTTE and would not bow down to pres- without any interruption. construction A-32 road leading from no land route available. sures from any quarter and opt for a “We are grateful to India for send- Mannar to Pooneryn after the forces Restrictions on fishing in the Senior Coordinator ceasefire. ing 9,000 tonnes of food items for the recaptured the area he said. Jaffna lagoon had been lifted and the to President Mahinda “Certain elements are spreading consumption of the IDP’s,” he said. The area is infested with land fishermen now can practice their pro- Rajapaksa and Sri rumours to gain political mileage say- Though we very well know that the mines and the troops are now engaged fession 24 hours a day after the re-cap- Lanka’s Consul ing that the government is planning a LTTE robs part of the consignment in the task of dismantling the explo- ture of Pooneryn by the forces, he con- General in Colombia ceasefire with the LTTE but there is no which is meant to the IDP’s, the gov- sive devices buried on the route, the culuded. and Venezuela Jeff Gunawardena, said Gunawardena that the Tamils and Muslims do have grievances and they would be addressed once the LTTE is defeat- Aston Martin ed. Gunawardena, who is also seized Mayor of Betten Roof State, was An Aston Martin (WP KG- speaking at a function held at the 1107), owned by Christy Lanka Nawala Wimala Vihara recently, to Group, was seized by authorities enable Tamil children from the war yesterday morning following an affected areas to engage in friendly action filed in the Commercial interaction with Sinhala children High Court, by the Hongkong from Colombo. It was organized by and Shanghai Banking the Galapotte Samanala Sports Corporation Limited(HSBC). Society, under the patronage of The bank said in a statement Venerable Beragama Wimala that the Fiscal seized and Dhamma Nayake Thero, the Chief sequestered the car in pursuance Incumbent of the Temple. of an application made under The people of all communities Section 653 of the Civil are longing for peace but that can Procedure by the bank against only be achieved by defeating Christy Lanka Apparels (Pvt) Velupillai Prabhakaran, a man who Limited, Christy Clothing, believes only in war, he said. “The Dilshan Fernando and Warsala The Patriotic National Movement yesterday held a commemorative event in honour of Veera Keppetipola at the open air Theatre of ethnic conflict destroyed the future Fernando. Vihara Mahadevi Park on Wednesday. Pic Kamal Bogoda of our children, people and country, but with victory imminent due to the heroic efforts of the security forces, I believe the Tamil youth from the North and East will be able to breathe freely once again.” Govt. earning Rs. 5 bn from fuel tax - Ravi Gunawardena said that having lived in the United States of America for twenty years,he was Answering a ques- the ministry had already started a not be given to one party alone as late chemicals was greater than the harm glad to be back and serve his coun- tion on why prices of number of large irrigation projects C.P. de Silva and Maithripala done to the country by try under the leadership of petroleum products including the Moragahakanda and Senanayaka were the pioneers of this the LTTE terrorists. If President Mahinda Rajapaksa. were not reduced fur- Veheragala schemes and some of scheme and the Polgolla dam which we continue to use agro Sri Lanka can be among the ther by the government, these will be completed during the was opened in 1976 during the chemical on our farm- developed nations of the world Minister of Petroleum first few months of 2009. The Sirimavo Bandaranaike government. lands for another ten within five years of the war ending, and Petroleum Moragahakanda scheme will benefit a The fertilizer subsidy will be con- years we will not be he predicted, but the bottom line is Resources A. H. M. large number of farmers and tinued even when the cost of fertiliz- make use of such lands that there has to be “real peace. Fowzie Fowzie told Parliament increase the extent of land under cul- er goes above Rs.5,000 per bag of 50 for any purpose in the Billions of rupees that are being yesterday (26) that the tivation and bring additional incomes kilograms, but the farmer was given future. used for the war effort, can then be Sirisena UNP had increased prices of these to farmer families. the bag at Rs. 350. Steps are also being He said a large per- channeled into development.” products by imposing a 64 per cent In the implementation of all the taken to popularize the centage of agriculture Gunawardena made personal tax on when the price of a barrel use of organic fertiliz- research officers serving the govern- cash contributions to Tsunami vic- of crude oil was only 54 US er to enrich the soil ment were not loyal to the country tims from Kilinochchi and Dollars but the government did and special training and such officers should be removed Hambantota. He also donated a play- not impose such taxes even when workshops to train and replaced with officers who are ground to the children of the price of a barrel went up to farmers had been con- loyal so that agriculture could be Kilinochchi. 142 US Dollars. ducted in all parts of made free from the influence of Chairman of the Vocational Fowzie, answering a question the country. transnational corporations. Training Authority Amal from UNP’s Ravi Karunanayake, T. Kanagasabai Minister of Agriculture Senadhilankara, Major Mahinda Chamal said the tax imposed was only 54 (TNA) Battiacaloa Hemakumara Nanayakkara said Divithuruge, army officers Beesta On Wednesday percent but the revenue the gov- District said the irri- the Ministry had carried out a new Hettiarachige, Thanuj ernment derived from the tax was by Wijitha Nakkawita and gation works in the Batticaloa programme of research training and Gunawardena, Anil Kumara being used to build new schools, Lakshmi de Silva District had not been repaired for extension in the agricul- Wijesinghe, Dayananda and hospitals, roads and over two decades and the irrigation ture sector so that even in Nilanka Gomes also participated in infrastructure. The loss major or minor irrigation schemes tanks were also neglected. The urban areas people had the event. incurred by the Ceylon people of the area, both men and Irrigation Department office in started planting some Petroleum Corporation women, were employed in the con- Batticaloa was short staffed and the small crop in their home from January up to now struction work and the income only vehicle it had was in a state of gardens during the last was 11 billion rupees but earned by each family was over 15,000 disrepair. The bund of the Unichchi year and this year. Home Rape of German tourist still the tax was not rupees. The existing irrigation works Reservoir was being repaired and gardening competitions, increased. needing repair were rehabilitated, raised under the ADB aid for supply- school agricultural com- Ven Karunanayake:Now both in the South and the other ing drinking water but irrigation in petitions, introducing Chief suspect Ravi Aturaliye you are asking for trou- regions and the target was to increase the district should be given high pri- new varieties of crops Rathana ble. Your government the extent of land now lying fallow ority. and bringing in larger held was earning 5 billion from the tax. due to lack of irrigation facilities, he Minister of Coconut extents of land under Fowzie: It was the taxes that gave said. Development Salinda paddy cultivation was some of the Police headquarters yesterday employment, built schools and irriga- Sivashakti Anandan (TNA) said Dissanayake said when the so- main features of the food production said that the main suspect wanted tion schemes. most of the farmers in the North had called Green Revolution was intro- drive. in connection with the incident Karunanayake: Deiyo saakki been chased out of their lands due to duced about three decades back most He would like remind those mem- where an 80-year-old German (God be the witness). the armed conflict and nations were deceived into the belief bers in the Opposition of the time tourist was allegedly raped in Fowzie: Though your government such farmers should be that food production and yield from when a leader wanted to fill up the Marawila over the last weekend had imposed a 64 percent tax you did not paid a compensation of crops like rice would be increased paddy lands and put up a mega city been arrested. give employment, build schools or Rs.10,000 per acre of considerably to feed the hungry mil- but today the world food price crisis Police spokesman said that a roads with your revenue. land they had cultivat- lions while making the farmers rich. could not have been faced by our part of the loot jewellery worth Rs 3 Joining the debate on the votes of ed. In the Wanni dis- But what actually happened was the country if the paddy lands were filled million robbed by the suspect and the ministries of Agriculture, trict irrigation canals International Rice Research up to put up mega cities. his two accomplices, too, had been Irrigation, Mahaweli and reservoirs had not Institute developed strains of rice During the last two years a record recovered. She is the mother of a Development and Lands S. K. been repaired for five that could be grown by using a high rice harvest was reaped while a very German who owned a hotel in the Subasinghe (JVP) Polonnaruwa decades. Therefore, of S. K. amount of artificial fertilizers and large extent of paddy land lying fal- Marawila police area. said the people in the rural sector, 30,000 acres of land Subasinghe agro chemicals while also needing low even in the Colombo and Three unidentified men had comprising 72 percent, were mainly that could have been intensive irrigation methods to sus- Gampaha District and including most forcibly entered the sleeping engaged in agriculture but while the cultivated only 15,000 acres were cul- tain them. districts were brought under the woman’s room and raped her and government had said it was improv- tivated in the current year. However, we lost the hardy indige- plough. robbed her of her jewellery ing the lot of the farmer the World Minister of Agriculture and nous varieties of rice and were sad- The extent will be further Health Organization had found that Mahaveli Development dled with the so-called improved vari- increased while other crops like food 40 percent of the pregnant women Maithripala Sirisena said the agri- eties of rice that were not hardy and grains like Kurakkan, and children in this sector were mal- culture sector had recorded a clear were vulnerable to plant diseases and green pea and cowpea nourished and anaemic. Even infants growth during the past three years. pests so that a high input of agro- were also being grown born from that 40 percent of mothers The national food production drive chemicals was required to upkeep in several districts and were anaemic. It was a sad situation was started in 2007 aimed at making these crops. However, finally our the acreage under each that should be addressed immediately the country self sufficient in food. farmlands had become chemical crop was increased. as it had been going on for many The main objective of the programme deserts while the western companies When the new irriga- years even before this budget was was to decrease the imports of food became richer and richer. Today a tion schemes like introduced in the House. that could be grown locally and stop new variety of rice had been devel- Morgahagakanda are The great economist and thinker imports of such items by the end of oped by our agro-scientists and it Hemakumara completed more land Karl Marx had predicted that the arti- 2010. could be grown without artificial fer- would be brought ficial economic growth of the capital- Major irrigation schemes like tilizer but gives a bigger yield than under the plough and the objective of ist society could not sustain its eco- Moragahakanda, financed with aid the varieties that need agrochemi- achieving self-sufficiency in food nomic gains without facing reces- from Iran and many other schemes cals. In Tamil Nadu about 300,000 could be reached in the next three sions and today those who were hail- started with Saudi and Japanese aid acres of that variety of rice is being years. Therefore, the critics of the ing the global capitalism and the will help to cultivate very large cultivated and we are also cultivating government who said the food pro- Sajith Premadasa, MP and Chairman of development of an indigenous econo- extents of land helping to achieve the extents of land as a pilot project in 18 duction drive was only propaganda the Janasuwaya Development my had failed to prevent the collapse increase of food production while giv- districts, he said. were invited to the farms and agri- Foundation at the recent inauguration of capitalist economies. ing farmers opportunities to earn Ven Aturaliye Rathana Thera said culture research stations to see the of a school building built at a cost of Rs 600,000 at Siyambalagaswila junior Minister of Ports, Aviation and higher incomes. The credit for the the harm done to the land by transna- physical progress made by the gov- school in the Hambantota district Irrigation Chamal Rajapakse said Mahaveli development scheme should tional corporations that deal in agro- ernment. through the support of the Janasuwaya Foundation.