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Political polarization, assassination of Lalith Athulathmudali and a new job for me

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Lalith Athulathmudali

Events moved quickly now. There was a progressive polarization of the political climate. The two Senior Ministers, Mr. Gamini Dissanayake and Mr. Lalith Athulathmudali who had left the government and formed their own political party, The Democratic United National Front (DUNF) were posing a considerable challenge to the ruling UNP. The original intention of this group was to get the President impeached, and to assume control of the party. But President Premadasa outwitted them. Now, this breakaway party was beginning to pose a significant challenge. Needless to say all this was accompanied with great bitterness. This was certainly something that the President was not prepared to forgive or forget. The Provincial Council elections were now due and candidates from various parties were in the field vying for votes.

Mr. Athulathmudali along with his former Ministerial colleague and others were also keenly contesting this election. On the late evening of April 23, 1993, when Mr. Athulathmudali was addressing a political rally at Kirulapone, a gunman shot him. He was rushed to hospital where in spite of all efforts by doctors, he succumbed to his injuries. There was an outpouring of grief and anger in the country. Mr. Athulathmudali was a respected and popular figure. He was widely identified as a future leader of the country. The bitterness of the political battle that preceded his assassination was such that a great many people suspected the President of having been behind it.

The fact that there were others who were thorns in the government’s side, who mysteriously disappeared, or like in the case of Richard de Zoysa turned up dead in the sea, strengthened this perception. People openly began accusing the President. The state of public feeling was high and running against the President. The voices of a few, more reflective people who thought that the President couldn’t possibly have had a hand in this, because he would have known well enough that such an act would boomerang on him, were drowned out. Mass feeling at the time was not conducive to any sober analysis. There was an unprecedented crowd at his funeral, and angry people threw stones at some government buildings on the way to the cemetery. The Ministry of Public Administration was one such institution where several windows were broken.

Assassination of President Premadasa

The information was that the President was greatly distressed at what had happened, and the imputations and accusations made against him. People working close to him reported that he was hurt, angry and at times almost hysterical. This came out in what was to be his own final political address eerily enough at the same Kirulapone venue at which Mr. Athulathmudali was killed. Recordings of his speech at this rally indicate that he was very emotional and greatly disturbed. He was clearly not the disciplined and controlled person he normally was.

Towards the end of his address, in a voice which virtually amounted to a screech he said something like “you can assassinate me if you want to, but don’t assassinate my character.” Just a few days later, on the May 1, he and those around him were blown up by a suicide bomber, when, reportedly against the advice of his security personnel, he was out on the road near the Armour Street Junction of his beloved Colombo Central electorate directing and encouraging, the UNP May day processionists who were on their way to the Galle Face Green for the May day rally which he himself was going to address.

The nation was stunned. This was a President who looked so strong and indestructible.

The people responded with mixed feelings, after the initial shock. Some lit crackers in celebration, the first time this has happened on the death of a national leader. This showed how polarized our society had become. On the other hand, the President’s very strength, indomitable nature and his uncompromising refusal to take no for an answer created a climate of fear. It was not a comfortable experience working with him. Even if you got on well with him, you still felt a little off balance. Very few people would have felt completely comfortable with him – he was not a predictable person.

I myself felt this sense of ambiguity when working with him, although he was always courteous and never interfered. I did not have this kind of feeling when at different times, and for different periods, and directly or indirectly I had to work with leaders like Mrs. Bandaranaike, Mr. Dudley Senanayake, Mr. J.R. Jayewardene, Mr. D.B. Wijetunge and Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga. President Premadasa was very result oriented and had many strong qualities. Making people feel at ease in his presence was not one of them.

Visit to the United States and Germany

Prime Minister D.B. Wijetunge was sworn in as President. Given the trauma, the transition fortunately for the country was remarkably smooth, a transition in which senior minister and later Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe played a major and critical role. On May 19 I had to go to New York, on my way to Connecticut for my son’s convocation at Eastern Connecticut State University where he was due to receive a B.Sc. degree in Management Science, with the subsidiary subject being Economics. He had done very well, passing out Summa Cum Laude and also being admitted to the Honor Society in Economics, based on his performance.

Out of the hundreds who graduated that day only about seven had passed out Summa Cum Laude. He had done his 13 years of schooling here, and then on Minister Lalith Athulathmudali’s strong recommendation joined the Institute of Technological Studies, (ITS) at Narahenpita, an American Campus. This was the only institution in Sri Lanka at the time which could have offered the teaching for a degree which combined management, economics and a strong programme in computer science which our son was looking for.

The fact that we needed to support him financially in the United States only for a little over a year, almost two and half years of the course being conducted here in Sri Lanka, was an added attraction. In New York, I stayed with Dr. Stanley Kalpage, our Permanent Representative at the United Nations and his wife Chitra, who were generous and genial hosts. After the visit to Connecticut, I flew on to Frankfurt, Germany to begin an official visit.

The German authorities, and their International Aid Agency GTZ had made excellent arrangements, and drawn up a varied and interesting programme, which not only took me to universities, schools and Ministries, but also many other places of interest in Frankfurt, Bonn, Heidelberg, Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin. I had an erudite companion attached to me all the time who drove me around and accompanied me during the whole tour. I was spared the bother therefore of attending to anything at all connected with my travels, lodging and the numerous other matters, which surface on a visit such as this.

I was able therefore to totally relax and concentrate on substance. This companion, Mr. Neumann, who had a Master’s degree and was very well read, and spoke excellent English was later to head the GTZ office located in the Ministry. In the meantime, we spent many pleasant hours discussing a whole range of subjects. As a parting gift he presented me with a most interesting book, “The Tao of Physics.” Whilst in Bonn I met our Ambassador Karu Jayasuriya and his wife Vasantha. They were friends. Both of them as well as Lalith Hettiaratchi of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service, who worked with me when I was Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Co-operatives, and who was now Deputy Ambassador, as well as his wife made me feel completely at home. Their warmth and hospitality were memorable.

Leaving The Education Ministry – summons by President Wijetunge

I arrived back in Sri Lanka on June 6 to a Ministry and a public service buzzing with rumours that I was to be sent as Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Home Affairs. It was common knowledge at the time that all was not well in that important Ministry. Some serious incompatibilities seem to have developed between the Minister, Mr. Festus Perera and his Secretary, Mr. Junaid. Reports circulating in the public service had it that the Minister was in a state of near constant irritability, that he often used to shout at officers and humiliate them in public, in the presence of trade unions and other delegations, and that he seemed to trust nobody.

His “Mini Cabinet” meetings were reputed to be “mini” in the sense of the Sinhala term “Mini” which meant death! The rumours were that many of the existing officers were trapped in the Ministry with no way of getting out, and that there was nobody who had the remotest wish of wanting to get in!

Such was the state of affairs when President Wijetunge summoned me to see him on June 8. I knew this was not to inquire after my health. The rumours about my impending appointment now took on some validity.

I went to see the President somewhat unhappily. Mr. Wijetunge greeted me cordially and affably as he was wont to do. In my own case, I had also worked with him, once when he was Minister of Information and Broadcasting and once, when for a brief period, he was Minister of Food. After the exchange of pleasantries and inquiries about my visit to Germany, he came to the point. “Dharmasiri, I have a big problem in the Ministry of Public Administration. I want you to please go there and assume duties immediately as Secretary.”

I asked him “Why me?” and went on to say that I still had uncompleted work in the Ministry of Education and Higher Education. He said, “No, please go. Festus cannot get on with Junaid, and there is a major crisis there. It is a very important Ministry. I don’t want a breakdown there.” “Who is coming to Education?” I asked. “I have decided to send Weragoda across from Fisheries” the president replied. I had by now cleared enough messes in a long career. I had no particular desire to go and clear another mess. “Why don’t you send Weragoda direct to Public Administration?” I asked, “instead of sending me into another mess just after clearing up a mess in Education.”

The President then virtually pleaded with me. He said “No, nobody else can handle Festus except you. Believe me I have called for and looked at the list of Secretaries. You are the only person Festus will respect,” and when I kept on looking at him, he said “Dharmasiri, please go. I can’t change the Minister.” That did it. I didn’t want to embarrass the President by persisting in reluctance. “I need a few days to wind up matters here,” I told him. “I will go and assume duties on June 16.” This was in a week’s time. The President was relieved. He thanked me warmly and I left.

An outpouring of emotion

I did not bargain for the impact the news of my going had on the Ministry. During the next few days hundreds of officers came to see me. Those who could not get to me telephoned me at home. They were very upset. Some were in tears. I was surprised, deeply touched and sometimes overwhelmed by the depth of the reaction. There was much work to be done before I left, including briefings, meetings and attending to many issues which officers wanted to finalize with me before my departure. I had to write a number of letters including to the Chairman UGC and the Vice Chancellors and various other colleagues in the system informing them of my going. This had to be done as a matter of courtesy. I was deeply touched by the replies I received from most of them.

My final day in the Ministry was June 15. The monthly Development Committee Meeting with the Provincial Secretaries of Education, the Provincial Directors and others was fixed for the morning of this day. My officers solicitously inquired from me that since this was my last day and since the meeting was going to take about three quarter of the day, whether it could be postponed, for the new Secretary to fix a date. I thanked them for their concern, but since this date had been fixed a month previously, I said I would proceed with it, since a last minute cancellation would inconvenience many officers. Besides, it was too important a meeting to postpone.

Secretaries could come and go. When the meeting ended at about 2.30 p.m. and when I announced to the Provincial Secretaries and Provincial Directors of Education and others that I had only a few hours left in the Ministry, there was total silence and shocked disbelief. I was deeply touched by the words of some of the Provincial Secretaries and others who spoke with great feeling. Some said that they had somewhat mixed feelings since I was going as Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration and therefore, as the head of the public service. They said that it could not be said that my presence was not needed there too.

I had to gently intervene and curtail the speeches, because the hour was late and they had not had their lunch. There was also a farewell organized by the Ministry, the Departments and other agencies a little later that afternoon. I just did not have time for lunch that day because there was a stream of officers who wanted to speak with me. This went on until I was reminded that everyone had gathered on the ground floor awaiting my arrival. There was as large a crowd gathered as on the day that Mr. Lalith Athulathmudali bade farewell.

Many spoke. Many of the speeches were quite emotional. When I looked around there were many officers, both men and women with tears pouring down as they stood. The crowd was so large that except for a few of us, providing seats was not possible. As the speeches went on well past 4.30 p.m. no one moved. Normally there is a rush to catch a bus or a train All this affected me too, and when it came to my turn to speak, I spoke with great difficulty. It is not easy to speak when you see so many tearful faces around you. It was a very emotional moment for all of us.

Never in my life, before or after had I experienced such spontaneous mass emotion, and this from officers of a Ministry, which many of my friends out of a feeling of kindness for me, thought I should not have gone to, at the time I was originally appointed as Secretary. The staff had also contributed and bought a huge brass lamp and some other items as gifts. It was with a heavy heart that I left the Ministry for what I thought was the last time, that evening. I was not to know that fate had other designs in store for me.

(Excerpted from In Pursuit of Governance, the autobiography of MDD Pieris)



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Citizenship, Devolution, Land and Language: The Vicarious Legacies of SJV Chelvanayakam

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From left GG Ponnambalam, SJV Chelvanayakam and M. Tiruchelvam

SJV Chelvanayakam, the founder leader of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Kadchi, aka Ceylon Tamil Federal Party, passed away 49 years ago on 26 April 1977. There were events in Sri Lanka and other parts of the world where Tamils live, to commemorate his memory and his contributions to Tamil society and politics. His legacy is most remembered for his espousal of the cause of federalism and his commitment to pursuing it solely through non-violent politics. Chelvanayakam’s political life spanned a full 30 years from his first election as MP for Kankesanthurai in 1947 until his death in 1977.

Under the rubric of federalism, Chelvanayakam formulated what he called the four basic demands of the Tamil speaking people, a political appellation he coined to encompass – the Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Muslims and the hill country Tamils (Malaiyaka Tamils). The four demands included the restoration of the citizenship rights of the hill country Tamils; cessation of state sponsored land colonisation in the North and East; parity of status for the Sinhala and Tamil languages; and a system of regional autonomy to devolve power to the northern and eastern provinces.

High-minded Politics

Although the four basic demands that Chelvanayakam articulated were not directly delivered upon during his lifetime, they became part of the country’s political discourse and dynamic to such an extent that they had to be dealt with, one way or another, even after his death. So, we can call these posthumous developments as Chelvanayakam’s vicarious legacies. There is more to his legacy. He belonged to a category of Sri Lankans, Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims, who took to politics, public life, public service, and even private business with a measure of high-mindedness that was almost temperamental and not at all contrived. Chelvanayakam personified high-minded politics. But he was not the only one. There were quite a few others in the 20th century. There have not been many since.

Born on 31 March 1898, Chelvanayakam was 49 years old when he entered parliament. He was not an upstart school dropout dashing into politics or coming straight out of the university, or even a hereditary claimant, but a self-made man, an accomplished lawyer, a King’s Counsel, later Queen’s Counsel, and was widely regarded as one of the finest civil lawyers of his generation. He was a serious man who took to politics seriously. Howard Wriggins, in his classic 1960 book, “Ceylon: Dilemmas of a New Nation”, called Chelvanayakam “the earnest Christian lawyer.”

Chelvanayakam’s professional standing, calm demeanour, his personal qualities of sincerity and honesty, and his friendships with men of the calibre of Sir Edward Jayatilleke KC (Chief Justice, 1950-52), H.V. Perera QC, P. Navaratnarajah, QC, and K.C. Thangarajah, were integral to his politics. The four of them were also mutual friends of Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike and they played a part in the celebrated consociational achievement in 1957, called the B-C Pact.

Chelvanayakam effortlessly combined elite consociationalism with grass roots politics and mass movements. He led the Federal Party both as a democratic organization and an open movement. Chelvanayakam and the Federal Party used parliament as their forum to present their case, the courts to fight for their rights, and took to organizing non-violent protests, political pilgrimages and satyagraha campaigns. He was imprisoned in Batticaloa, detained in Panagoda, and was placed under house arrest several times. His Alfred House Gardens neighbours in Colombo used to wonder why the government and the police were after him, of all people, and why wouldn’t they do something about his four boisterous, but studious, sons!

He was a rare politician who filed his own election petition when he was defeated in the 1952 election, his first as the leader of the Federal Party, and was rewarded with punitive damages by an exacting judge. He had to borrow money from Sir Edward Jayatilleke to pay damages. The common practice for losing candidates was to file vexatious petitions in the name of one of their supporters with no asset to pay legal costs. Chelvanayakam was too much of a principled man for that. As a matter of a different principle, the two old Left parties never challenged election losses in court, but Dr. Colvin R de Silva singled out Chelvanayakam’s uniqueness for praise in parliament, in the course of a debate on amendments to the country’s election laws in 1968.

Disenfranchisement & Disintegration

Although he became an MP in 1947, Chelvanayakam had been associated with GG Ponnambalam and the Tamil Congress Party for a number of years. GG was the flamboyant frontliner, SJV the quiet mainstay behind. Tamil politics at that time was all about representation. In fact, all politics in Sri Lanka has been all about representation all the time. It started when British colonial rulers began nominating local (Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim) representatives to quasi legislative bodies, and it became a contentious political matter after the introduction of universal franchise in 1931.

Communal representation was conveniently made to look ugly by those who themselves were politically communal. Indeed, under colonial rule, if not later too, Sri Lankans were a schizophrenic society where most Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims were socially friendly, but politically communal. The underlying premise to the fight over representation was that British colonialists were not leaving in a hurry and they were there to stay and rule for a long time. Hence the jostling for positions under a foreign master. It was in this context that Ponnambalam made his celebrated 50-50 pitch for balanced representation between the Sinhalese, on the one hand, and all the others – Tamils, Muslims, Indian Tamils – combined on the other. It was a perfectly rational proposition, but it was also perfectly poor politics.

But independence came far sooner than expected. The Soulbury Constitution was set up not for a continuing colonial state, but as the constitution for an independent new Ceylon. So, the argument for balanced representation became irrelevant in the new circumstances. The new Soulbury Constitution was enacted in 1945, general elections were held in 1947, a new parliament was elected, and Ceylon became independent in 1948. SJV Chelvanayakam was among the seven Tamil Congress MPs elected to the first parliament led by GG Ponnambalam.

The Tamil Congress campaigned in the 1947 election against accepting the Soulbury Constitution and for a vaguely formulated mandate “to cooperate with any progressive Sinhalese party which would grant the Tamil their due rights.” But what these rights are was not specified. In a Feb. 5, 1946 speech in Jaffna, Ponnambalam specifically proposed “responsive cooperation between the communities” – not parties – and advocated “a social welfare policy” to benefit not only the poor masses of Tamils but also the large masses of the Sinhalese.

So, when Ponnambalam and four of the seven Tamil Congress MPs decided to join the government of DS Senanayake with Ponnambalam accepting the portfolio of the Minister of Industries, Industrial Research and Fisheries, they were opposed by Chelvanayakam and two other Tamil Congress MPs. The immediate context for this split was the Citizenship question that arose soon after independence when DS Senanayake’s UNP government introduced the Ceylon Citizenship Bill in parliament. The purpose and effect of the bill was to deprive the estate Tamils of Indian origin (then numbering about 780,000) of their citizenship. Previously the government had got parliament to enact the Elections Act to stipulate that only citizens can vote in national elections. In one stroke, the whole working population of the plantations was disenfranchised.

GG Ponnambalam and all seven Tamil Congress MPs voted against the two bills. Joining them in opposition were the six MPs from the Ceylon Indian Congress representing the Malaiyaka Tamils and 18 Sinhalese MPs from the Left Parties. The Citizenship Bill was passed in Parliament on 20 August 1948. Ponnambalam called it a dark day for Ceylon and accused Senanayake of racism. But less than a month later, on September 3, 1948, he joined the Senanayake cabinet as a prominent minister and the government’s principal defender in parliamentary debates. Dr. NM Perera once called Ponnambalam “the devil’s advocate from Jaffna.”

Chelvanayakam remained in the opposition with two of his Congress colleagues. A little over an year later, on December 18, 1949, Chelvanayakam founded the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi, Federal Party in English. Not long after, joining Chelvanayakam in the opposition was SWRD Bandaranaike, who broke away from the UNP government over succession differences and went on to form another new political party, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. As was his wont as a Marxist to see trends and patterns in politics, Hector Abhayavardhana saw the breakaways of Chelvanayakam and Bandaranaike, as well as the emergence of Thondaman as the leader of the disenfranchised hill country Tamils, as symptoms of a disintegrating society as it was transitioning from colonial rule to independence.

Abhayavardhana saw the Citizenship Act as the political trigger of this disintegration in the course of which “what was set up for the purpose of a future nation ended in caricature as a Sinhalese state.” Chelvanayakam may have agreed with this assessment even though he was located at the right end of the ideological continuum. “Ideologically, SJV is to the right of JR,” was part of political gossip in the old days. He saw “seeds of communism” in Philip Gunawardena’s Paddy Lands Act. For all their differences, Chelvanayakam and Ponnambalam were united in one respect – as unrepentant opponents of Marxism.

The Four Demands

Chelvanayakam had his work cut out as the leader of a new political party and pitting himself against a formidable political foe like Ponnambalam with all the ministerial resources at his disposal. Chelvanayakam may not have quite seen it that way. Rather, he saw his role as a matter of moral duty to fill the vacuum created by what he believed to be Ponnambalam’s betrayal, and to provide new leadership to a people who were at the crossroads of uncertainty after the unexpectedly early arrival of independence.

He set about his work by expanding his political constituency to include not only the island’s indigenous Tamils, but also the Muslims and the Tamil plantation workers from South India – as the island’s Tamil speaking people. It was he who vigorously introduced the disenfranchised Indian Tamils as hill country Tamils. In the aftermath of the Citizenship Act and disenfranchisement, restoring their citizenship rights became an obvious first demand for the new Party.

Having learnt the lesson from Ponnambalam’s failed 50-50 demand, Chelvanayakam territorialized the representation question by identifying the northern and eastern provinces as “traditional Tamil homelands,” and adding a measure regional autonomy to make up for the shortfall in representation at the national level in Colombo. To territorialization and autonomy, he added the cessation of state sponsored land colonization especially in the eastern province. Chelvanayakam and the Federal Party painstakingly explained that they were by no means opposed to Sinhalese voluntarily living in Tamil areas, either as a matter of choice, pursuing business or as government and private sector employees, but the nuancing was quite easily lost in the political shouting match.

The fourth demand, after citizenship, regional autonomy, and land, was about language. Language was not an issue when Chelvanayakam started the Federal Party. But he pessimistically predicted that sooner or later the then prevailing consensus, based on a State Council resolution, over equality between the two languages would be broken. He was proved right, sooner than later, and language became the explosive question in the 1956 election. As it turned out, the UNP government was thrown out, SWRD Bandaranaike led a coalition of parties to victory and government in the south, while SJV Chelvanayakam won a majority of the seats in the North and East, including two Muslims from Kalmunai and Pottuvil.

After the passage of the Sinhala Only Act on June 5, 1956, the Federal Party launched a political pilgrimage and mobilized a convention that was held in Trincomalee in the month of August. The four basic demands were concretized at the convention, viz., citizenship restoration for the hill country Tamils, parity of status for the Sinhala and Tamil languages, the cessation of state sponsored land colonization, and a system of regional autonomy in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

The four demands became the basis for the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam agreement – the B-C Pact of 1957, and again the agreement between SJV Chelvanayakam and Dudley Senanayake in 1965. The former was abrogated by Prime Minister Bandaranaike under political duress but was not abandoned by him. The latter has been implemented in fits and starts.

The two agreements which should have been constitutionally enshrined, were severely ignored in the making of the 1972 Constitution and the 1978 Constitution – with the latter learning nothing and forgetting everything that its predecessor had inadvertently precipitated. The political precipitation was the rise of Tamil separatism and its companion, Tamil political violence. Ironically, Tamil separatism and violence created the incentive to resolve what Chelvanayakam had formulated and non-violently pursued as the four basic demands of the Tamils.

After his death in 1977, the citizenship question has finally been resolved. The 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution that was enacted in 1987 resolved the language question both in law and to an appreciable measure in practice. The same amendment also brought about the system of provincial councils, substantially fulfilling the regional autonomy demand of SJV Chelvanayakam. The land question, however, has taken a different turn with state sponsored land colonisation in the east giving way to government security forces sequestering private residential properties of Tamil families in the north, especially in the Jaffna Peninsula.

Further, the future of the Provincial Council system has become uncertain with the extended postponement of provincial elections by four Presidents and their governments, including the current incumbents. The provinces are now being administered by the President through handpicked governors without the elected provincial councils as mandated by the constitution. Imagine a Sri Lanka where there is only an Executive President and no parliament – not even a nameboard one. “What horror!”, you would say. But that is the microcosmic reality today in the country’s nine provinces.

by Rajan Philips

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Application of AI in Logistics in Sri Lanka can improve efficiency, reduce cost and enhance decision making

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KIVA robots in Amazon Warehouses

“AI increases profits while reducing un ethical intervention which is proven by Successful Global Business Models”

Artificial Intelligence(AI) is still only a buzz word in the Sri Lankan society, though many wanted to have an awareness of the concept the resources are scares, even still the IT industry has not formulated any awareness programs or a Degree yet to cope with the development. But world education warns that there want be any IT based jobs in future without learning the AI. AI has multiple use in any discipline and it has the ability to increase the efficiency of the work intern cut down the product or the service cost. Below description is how the application of AI can smoother the function of Logistic or the Supply Chain Management.

AI Integrating Procedure for Distribution Systems

Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in logistics can greatly improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance decision-making in simple enhance the profit margins. Below is a structured overview of how AI can be used in logistics, including key applications, tools, and real-world examples. Machine Learning(ML) is the foundation to AI but subsequently develops the capability of absorbing the information from the cloud (IT environment) and produce future behavior or trends by analyzing the fed data to the computers on a certain period of time. In some occasions vendors offer unbelievable discounts by using ML or AI, because it clearly understands the market behavior, human behavior, expiration and many other variables that gives the profits or losses to the product or the service.

Key Areas Where AI is Used in Logistics;

· Demand Forecasting

· Route Optimization

· Warehouse Automation

· Predictive Maintenance

· Inventory Management

· Supply chain Management

· Customer Service with Chat bots

· Fraud Detection and Risk Management

1. Demand Forecasting

AI can analyze historical data, market trends, and external factors (like weather or news) to:

· Predict product demand more accurately

· Optimize inventory levels

· Reduce stockouts or overstocking

Tools: Machine learning models (e.g., time series forecasting) and IT platforms/software like Amazon Forecast, Prophet by Meta. These are the software applications that helps to understand the future trends.

Amazon Forecasting software

Traditional forecasting methods typically rely on statistical modeling, but software like “Chronos” that treats time series data (data collected during a certain period of time) as a language to be modeled and uses a pre-trained FM (forecast Models) to generate forecasts, which similar to how “Large Language Models” (LLMs) generate texts helps you achieve accurate predictions faster, significantly reducing development time compared to traditional methods.

Prophet by Meta

Prophet is a very efficient and accurate procedure for forecasting time series data based on an additive model where non-linear trends are fit with yearly, weekly, and daily seasonality, plus holiday effects. It works best with time series that have strong seasonal effects and several seasons of historical data. This software adds many social, cultural and geographical variables other than internal information to decision making.

2. Route Optimization

AI-powered systems can calculate the most efficient delivery routes in real-time using:

· Traffic data

· Weather conditions

· Delivery time windows

· Vehicle capacity and fuel usage

Example: UPS (one of the largest Logistic companies in the world) uses its ORION system (AI-based) to save millions of gallons of fuel per year.

IT Tools: Google OR-Tools, Route4Me, Mapbox with ML integration.

IBM Maximo is a multi-facet coordinator

The “Route4Me” IT platform automates and integrates mission-critical last mile workflows, empowering route planners, dispatchers, drivers, and managers to take the business to the next level. Distribution networks, passenger transportation networks can achieve much cost reduction by using above platforms. This is a good platform for the Sri Lanka passenger industry to reduce the overheads for the population. In Sri Lanka “Pick me” and “Uber” uses similar platforms in their transportation industry. Whole three wheeler industry can be regulating with this kind of software and transfer benefits to the passengers.

3. Warehouse Automation

AI enables:

· Robotics for picking, packing, and sorting

· Vision systems for scanning and inventory management

· Autonomous forklifts and drones for internal transport

Example: Amazon’s use of “Kiva robots” in fulfillment(distribution) centers.

Kiva Robots in Warehouses

Traditionally, goods are moved around a distribution center using a conveyor system  or by human-operated machines (such as forklifts). In Kiva’s approach, items are stored in portable storage units. When an order is entered into the Kiva database system, the software locates the closest automated guided vehicle to the item and directs it to retrieve it. The mobile robots navigate around the warehouse by following a series of computerized bar-code stickers on the floor. Each drive unit has a sensor that prevents it from colliding with others. When the drive unit reaches the target location, it slides underneath the pod(Pallet) and lifts it off the ground through a corkscrew action. The robot then carries the pod to the specified human operator to pick up the items or subsequently hand over to the “drone” to deliver to the customer. Human intervention is minimal and accordingly overheads are reduced, Sri Lanka needs to achieve this kind of operational level in order to par with the international markets.

4. Predictive Maintenance

Traditionally Sri Lankans are week in maintenance, they basically wait until the machine stops in the other way bureaucratic too are much restrict on the maintenance and the procurement procedure. Applying this kind of maintenance software will eradicate all of these lethargies and the bureaucratic blocks. Subsequently continuing the smooth operations and productions.

AI monitors equipment (vehicles, conveyor belts, etc.) to:

· Predict when they will fail

· Schedule maintenance proactively

· Reduce downtime and repair costs

Tools: IoT(internet of things as cameras, sensors, GPS etc.) sensors + ML models (e.g., anomaly detection), IT platforms like IBM Maximo.

IBM Maximo is a multi-facet coordinator

“From equipment to factories, from fleets to infrastructure, Maximo Application Suite empowers users across verticals to coordinate maintenance and management for a broad range of asset classes”.

5. Supply Chain Visibility

AI can analyze data across the supply chain to:

· Track shipments in real-time

· Identify delays or bottlenecks

· Provide predictive ETAs

📦 Example: DHL (Logistic Company) uses AI to forecast transit delays and offer dynamic ETA updates.

This is an ideal tool for cargo management, ideal for sea ports and the air ports in Sri Lanka. This is one of the grave gray areas in the port system, though the port system is lacking the required information due to that the client has to pay the demurrages and warehouse cost for the ports. Also, cut down unnecessary delays and reduce bribes and corruption at all levels.

6. Inventory Management

AI helps optimize:

· Stock levels across multiple warehouses

· Replenishment timing

· Safety stock calculation

Tools: ERP (Entrepreneur Resource Planning) systems with embedded AI (e.g., SAP, Oracle), custom ML models.

These systems drastically reduce the human intervention and speedup the Supply management process.

7. Customer Service & Chatbots

AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can:

· Handle customer queries 24/7

· Track orders

· Provide personalized delivery updates

Tools: Dialogflow, Microsoft Bot Framework, ChatGPT API

Dialogflow

“Dialogflow” is a natural language understanding IT platform that makes it easy to design and integrate a conversational user interface into the mobile app, web application, device, bot, interactive voice response system, and so on. Using Dialogflow, establishments can provide new and engaging ways for users to interact with the product. Dialogflow can analyze multiple types of input from the customers, including text or audio inputs (like from a phone or voice recording). It can also respond to the customers in a couple of ways, either through text or with synthetic speech.

AI Conversational Chatbots Platform

Above IT platforms control the human intervention and reduce the cost of employees. Chatbots are basically efficient than the humans due to the high memory power for the standard customer inquiries. Application to Government sector will reduce the burden for the general public.

8. Fraud Detection & Risk Management

AI detects unusual patterns in:

· Orders

· Transactions

· Supplier behavior

Helps prevent:

· Cargo theft

· Counterfeit goods

· Financial fraud

*”KPMG Clara” for Supply Chain Risk Management

“KPMG Clara” is an AI-powered IT platform offering supply chain analytics, risk detection, and compliance management.

Key Features:

· AI-driven risk modeling

· ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and compliance monitoring

· Predictive analytics for disruptions

· Supplier risk scoring

“Geo Analysis” (AI based) IT platform in Supply Chain Access Control

Above IT platform Monitor access patterns across cross-border freight hubs, regional warehouses, and remote carrier logins. “Geo analysis” for supply chain authentication identifies impossible travel, geo-inconsistencies, and spoofed IPs to reduce credential abuse and unauthorized entry into logistics systems. This important IT platform can reduce corruption and many unethical practices, ideal tool for the Sri Lankan Government sector that can curb the mal practices.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a remarkable IT tool which can apply in almost all the sectors that can reap the Efficiency and Accuracy. In above paragraphs I have described the application in different stages of the Logistic or the Supply Chain Management. Application of AI tools can be done on stages as initially find the specific pain points pertaining to the supply chain and then, prepare data from the GPS, inventory systems, sales forecasts and supplier records. Subsequently can understand the specific AI platforms and ML models to suit the SCM operation. Further, can apply in a small scale as a pilot project and analyze impact as cost savings or efficiency gains. Once understand the model can roll out to other areas of operations in the establishment.

Final outcome will be “15% reduction in fuel cost, 20% faster deliveries, Increased customer satisfaction”

There may be many negative lobbies since this is new to the many sectors in the country and further ability to proof the corruption but proper education and understanding the world AI based business models, establishments can reach the required goal.

(Writer can be reached at, chandana_w@yahoo.com)

by Lt Col. Chandana Weerakoon.
Chartered Logistician

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Features

Motherhood is not ‘giving up’

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Since having my baby, I have been regularly met with the question, “Are you back at work?”

“No,”

I reply. “I am doing my PhD from home.”

Several emotions arise. I feel guilty that I am not back at work, that somehow I should be. I also feel relieved that I can justify my time at home by offering up the PhD as a worthy endeavour. Sometimes, the person responds in surprise, “Oh, so no work?” Other times, they are approving, “How lucky for you and your baby.” Occasionally, there is the advice, “Don’t give up work.”

At the back of my mind are certain thoughts. “Am I not ‘working’? Isn’t the work of motherhood also considered ‘work’? If it isn’t, shouldn’t it be?”

Although the questions, comments, and advice about returning to work are made innocently enough, mostly benevolently, they have prompted me to reflect on the idea of work and motherhood, and how mothers and society view both.

Motherhood, I believe, is a full-time, highly skilled, unpaid job that never ends. All mothers work at least two jobs. They do the work of mothering, and also work in either a paid or unpaid additional role. Many women will do even more. They mother, care for their elderly parents, work a paid job, voluntarily contribute to community building, and try to fit in creative pursuits, hobbies, or ‘self-care’ when they can.

Motherhood requires many skills. You are, effectively, the CEO of your family and home (with hopefully a supportive co-CEO by your side). There is the work of child-rearing, which requires patience, energy, creativity, presence, flexibility, courage, fortitude, knowledge, and the ability to research, learn, and unlearn. You are raising the future. Then there is the work of home and family life, which requires skills in leadership, organisation, prioritisation, delegation, negotiation, financial management, crisis management, and conflict resolution. There is also the internal work of being self-aware, forgiving yourself and others, practicing compassion, and accepting the inherent imperfections of ‘doing it all’.

This work of motherhood is now recognised as ‘unpaid caregiving and domestic work’ and ‘invisible labour’ by international organisations such as the United Nations. It includes physical labour, direct care labour, mental or cognitive labour, and emotional labour, and is mostly the work of women.

I am not complaining. Men have their own unpaid labour. I love being a mother and wife. I view it as a privilege and a blessing. Ideally, the job can also be supported by paid or unpaid help. My point is that the work of women, and specifically mothers, should be recognised and respected, not only by society, but also by women and mothers themselves.

I know it is not just me who has experienced conflicting emotions about ‘giving up’ traditional work to focus on family life. Within my social circle and more widely, mothers describe a loss of self-worth and identity unless they are ‘working mothers’, and feeling embarrassment and guilt when asked the dreaded question, “What do you do?” There is the loss of financial dignity that comes with taking on an unpaid job, no matter how important you may think it is. Dynamics with husbands also need to shift, where both members are viewed as equally valuable to making the business of ‘home’ successful.

Neha Ruch, the author of The Power Pause, is an American brand strategist-turned-full-time stay-at-home mother and home maker, who addresses this very issue. Many of my thoughts for this article are based on her book. She argues that the time a woman wishes to invest in this phase of life, motherhood and family life, is valuable, not just for the children or family unit, but for the mother herself. It is a time for growth, skill-building, and expanding networks and connections.

Often, it leads women in new, creative, and more fulfilling directions, and provides an opportunity for them to re-enter the workforce on their own terms. She also points out that ‘the pause’ is not a luxury for a lucky minority, as many women become the default caregiver for their children if childcare is too costly, or not the preferred option. Through the movement she has created, Ruch provides legitimacy, validation, and structure to this phase of life (because, after all, it is only a phase, not forever) that is often spoken of as mindless, monotonous, and unglamorous, and I am grateful for it.

I suppose what I am saying is, next time you meet a mother, consider asking her, “How are you?”, and next time I am asked what I do, I should proudly declare (using Ruch’s script), “Right now, I am on a career pause and get to be home with my baby, and I am exploring possibilities for the future.”

(Lihini Wijeyaratne Cooray

Lihini is rediscovering her love for writing while embracing first-time motherhood and her ‘Power Pause’. She is also navigating her roles as a doctor and PhD researcher. She hopes that her writing can inspire a fresh perspective on motherhood as being valuable, powerful, and exciting.)

by Lihini Wijeyaratne Cooray

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