Commencement of bus service via A9 route from Jaffna doubtful

[TamilNet, Saturday, 01 August 2009, 08:45 GMT]
Government announced that transport service for public between Jaffna and Colombo will commence from 1 August but the officials of Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) in Jaffna who have to provide the buses said that they had not received any instructions from their superiors in Colombo. The five buses which took 210 passengers from Jaffna on 22 July in an event inaugurated by Basil Rajapakse, the brother and advisor of President Mahinda Rajapakse are being held back in Jaffna by Sri Lanka Army (SLA), they further said.

Though ministers including Aluthananda Gamage and ruling party politicians continue to harp on opening the A9 route for public use nothing significant is being done, civil society sources in Jaffna said.

There are no buses available in Jaffna to engage in the transport service via A9 route as the five buses which took passenger are being blocked in Vavuniya, SLTB officials said.

Meanwhile, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians in Jaffna accused the government ministers and others of offering false promises to lure voters to their party in the forthcoming Jaffna Municipal Council Election.