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India’s
Development Assistance Projects in Sri Lanka
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India’s
assistance has been able to make a difference in the lives of the people in the
conflict-affected areas said the Indian High Commissioner Mr. Y.K. Sinha at a special
screening of “Beyond Boundaries”, a documentary produced by the Ministry of
External Affairs, the Government of India, which shows a glimpse of India's
Development Assistance Projects in Sri Lanka.
In his remarks at the screening, the High
Commissioner highlighted the phased approach of India’s assistance to Sri Lanka,
in line with the needs and requirements of the people of Sri Lanka at any given
time, as articulated through the Government of Sri Lanka. The High Commissioner also
underlined the various stages of India’s assistance to Sri Lanka and focused on
sectors where India’s assistance has been able to make a difference in the
lives of the people in the conflict-affected areas. He recalled the dispatch of
emergency relief assistance in November 2008 in the form of 2,50,000 family
packs comprising daily use items such as clothing, utensils, essential food
packets, personal hygiene items etc. and setting up of an Emergency Field
Hospital at Pulmoddai in March 2009, which was later shifted to Chettikulam,
which provided emergency treatment to about 50,000 patients and conducted
nearly 3,000 surgical operations.
With focus on the rehabilitation and
resettlement after the armed conflict came to an end, the High Commissioner
outlined India’s assistance in form of 10.4 metric tonnes of corrugated roofing
sheets, 4 lakh cement bags, 95,000 packs
of agricultural implements and seeds to farmers, 500 tractors to agro-centres
across the five districts of the Northern Province, deployment of seven
demining teams which cleared about 70 million square metres of
mine-contaminated and the organization of artificial limb-fitment camps to address the
needs of the victims of mines and other unexploded ordnance. The High Commissioner further elaborated on India’s assistance in meeting the long-term requirements of rehabilitation, re-settlement and re-construction and emphasized that Indian projects now encompassed virtually all major sectors of the economy, including housing, infrastructure, education, health, agriculture, fisheries, industry, handicrafts, culture and sports.
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Mr.
Y.K. Sinha
The
Indian High Commissioner
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Speaking
about the flagship Indian Housing project, the High Commissioner informed that
the Pilot Project for constructing 1,000 houses in the Northern Province was
completed in July 2012 and the second phase of the Housing Project, that involved
constructing 43,000 houses in the Northern and Eastern Provinces under an
owner-driven approach, was progressing smoothly. Till date India had selected
and transferred the first instalment of funds to 13,500 beneficiaries, second instalment
to 11,800 beneficiaries, third instalment to 6,000 beneficiaries, and the fourth
& final instalment to over 1,000 beneficiaries. The
High Commissioner underlined that the Northern Railway Line Project, which
would restore rail connectivity between Medawachchiya and KKS, and also between
Medawachchiya and Talaimannar, would be completed by April 2014. He also pointed to the efforts to enhance
sea-side connectivity by restarting the ferry service between Rameswaram and
Talaimannar and highlighted the important role being played by the 10 bus-trains
supplied by India and plying between Trincomalee and Batticaloa in meeting
transportation needs of thousands of commuters every day.
Focussing
on the education sector, the High Commissioner recalled India’s help to repair
and renovate 79 war-damaged schools in Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu and Vavuniya and
the project for setting up a Faculty of Agriculture and a Faculty of Engineering
at the Kilinochchi Campus of the Jaffna University at a cost of SLR 600
million. He also highlighted the tripling by India of scholarship assistance
for Sri Lanka, amounting to SLR 2.5 billion over the next 3 years. India’s
assistance also included computers and related hardware to over 400 schools in
the Eastern Province and the setting up of vocational training centres in
Batticaloa and Nuwara Eliya. India’s interventions in the health sector include
supply of high-value equipment to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital and the district
hospitals in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu and the construction of a 200-bed ward
complex for the District Hospital in Vavuniya. India had also helped set up and
equip the Siddha Faculty at the Eastern University in Trincomalee. The 150-bed
base hospital project at Dickoya, Hatton, being built with India’s assistance,
was nearing completion.
The
High Commissioner also pointed out other initiatives to revive local economies such
as re-establishing the Atchchuvely Industrial Zone, reviving the fishnet
factory in Jaffna, supply of fishing equipment and outboard motors to fishermen
in Mannar district and setting up Handicrafts Villages in Jaffna and
Hambantota. India is also implementing a project to provide assistance for 1,320
small businesses that were affected by the armed conflict in Kilinochchi and
Mullaitivu districts. Equipment worth SLR 70 million has been provided to the
Palmyrah Research Institute in Jaffna and 10,000 bicycles provided to the IDPs
of Northern Province. In the field of
culture, the High Commissioner stated that India was looking forward to moving
ahead with the project for setting up a state-of-the-art Cultural Centre at Jaffna,
at an estimated cost of SLR 1.2 billion. He concluded by saying that India
would continue to undertake various projects for the benefit of the Sri Lankan
people, in a spirit of partnership and cooperation.
Parliamentarians,
senior government officials, members of the civil society, representatives of
implementing agencies involved with the Indian projects and media
representatives participated in the event which was organized by the Indian Cultural Centre, Colombo.
