News
Govt. must intervene to protect estate workers – MONLAR
By Rathindra Kuruwita
The government had to intervene immediately and prepare the estate sector to face the COVID-19 threat, Moderator of the Movement for Land and Agricultural Reform (MONLAR) Chinthaka Rajapakshe told The Island yesterday.
Hatton and several towns had been isolated due to the spread of COVID-19, but there was little preparation in the plantations to deal with a possible outbreak, Rajapakshe said.
“We are reaching a dangerous state as a nation, but the situation on the estates is particularly bad. Estate workers live in congested line rooms, use common toilets and have low levels of education. So, if COVID-19 spreads to the estates, it will spread like wildlife. On the other hand, it virtually has no infrastructure to deal with an outbreak.”.
The MONLAR Moderator said that the state of estate hospitals was abysmal and the workers had not been educated on COVID-19. “At least, in other parts of the country, people are somehow exposed to programmes on preventing COVID-19. But that’s not the case here. That is why the government has to intervene now.”
The government must also keep an eye on how any possible lockdown would affect the estate sector workers economically. He said that the nutrition among the estate sector workers was extremely low with at least 30% of children underweight and pregnant women malnourished. External shocks like the COVID—19 would only make matters worse, Rajapakshe said.
“Therefore, we urge plantation companies and the unions to find a way to help these people during this crisis. An allowance for them to weather this storm must be given at least for the coming three months.” The MONLAR moderator said there were around 150,000 families on estates.
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya met with the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dr. Kristalina Georgieva, at Temple Tress on the 17th of February
Dr. Georgieva, commended the Government’s efforts in stabilizing the country’s economy and in managing recent economic and natural shocks. She noted that Cyclone Ditwah had caused severe impacts, especially on economically vulnerable communities, underscoring the importance of targeted support and resilience-building measures.
The Prime Minister expressed appreciation for the IMF’s continued support to Sri Lanka, particularly in the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah. The PM further emphasized that real economic recovery and development must directly benefit the economically vulnerable groups and ensure inclusive growth, highlighting the need for Sri Lanka to attract quality and sustainable investments, particularly in the tourism sector.
The importance of reforming the education system to focus not only on knowledge acquisition but also on skills development and employability was also discussed
The meeting was attended by the Chief of Staff of the IMF Managing Director Andreas Bauer, Director, Asia and Pacific Department, Dr. Krishna Srinivasan Division Chief (Strategic Communications), Communications Department, Pierre Mejlak Resident Representative for Sri Lanka Dr. Martha Woldemichael, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Dr. P. Nandalal Weerasinghe, and Deputy Governor Dr. C. Amarasekara, Secretary to the Prime Minister Pradeep Saputhanthri and Additional Secretary to the Prime Minister Ms. Sagarika Bogahawatta.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution forwarded by the Minister of Health and Mass Media to relocate the Deniyaya Base Hospital after constructing a new hospital with a capacity of 300 beds at an estimated cost of Rupees 6,000 million.
The Southern Provincial Department of Health has acquired a plot of land in Handford estate which is approximately 03 kilometres away from the town for this purpose.
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