Basil Rajapaksa visits Batticaloa to discuss ADB allocation of funds

[TamilNet, Sunday, 27 July 2008, 17:04 GMT]
Asian Development Bank (ADB) has allocated 4,015 million rupees for the development of agriculture and irrigation tanks in Batticaloa district and a conference presided by Basil Rajapakse, the brother and Senior Advisor to SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa and member of parliament, was held Sunday in Batticaloa District Secretariat to discuss ways of making use of the ADB funds, sources in Batticaloa said. Sri Lankan ministers and heads of local and provincial governments of the ruling UPFA, TMVP alliance attended the conference. Members of parliament from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in Batticaloa district were not invited.

Resuming cultivation of the lands that remain uncultivated and the renovation of irrigation tanks in these areas which are in poor condition were discussed in the conference besides maize cultivation on high lands to increase food production in the district.

Cattle raising and fishery too were taken for discussion.

In addition to the discussion on cultivating the paddy lands that had remained uncultivated for a long time, the discussions focused on the use of fallow lands that could be used for food production.

Sri Lankan ministers Hemakumara Nanayakkara (Agriculture), Susantha Punchinilame (Nation Building), Amir Ali Sihabdeen (Disaster Relief Services), Governor of North East Province Rear Admiral (Retd) Mohan Wijeyawickrema, Paramilitary leader and Chief Minister of Eastern Province Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan, provincial ministers, Hisbulla, Uthumaan Lebbai, Navaratnarajah, Batticaloa Mayor Ms. Sivakeertha and presidents of local council bodies, officials of the departments of agriculture, irrigation and the representatives of local and international non-government organizations participated in the above conference.