Indunil Kahatapitiya – Kandy
A notable incident occurred at the District Coordination Committee meeting held today (06) at the Kandy District Secretariat under the patronage of the President. Several officials from multiple sectors failed to present the basic disaster-related data requested by the President.
The President specifically questioned the preparedness of officials for the government’s programme to restore essential services and help the public return to normal life.
However, it became clear that, except for the Deputy Commissioner of Agricultural Services (Central Province), T.A. Ranasinghe, no other official had a practical plan for rehabilitation and recovery.
Ten days after the disaster, when officials were asked about the extent of the damage, the repairs completed, the areas still in critical condition, and the ground-level plans to resolve these issues, only the Deputy Commissioner of Agrarian Development could provide specific answers.
Most of the responses given by others were speculative. The Deputy Commissioner of Agrarian Development stated that he could submit a detailed report with data on the amount of land that could be cultivated quickly, the extent of damaged land, the nature of the damage, and the farmland requiring urgent rehabilitation. He also said that, based on this report, steps would be taken to provide compensation and grants to restart cultivation as soon as possible.
The President stressed that government officials must continue to perform their duties responsibly during a crisis and work in coordination with other public and private institutions for the benefit of the people.
It was also revealed that 18 out of 20 drinking water projects in Kandy had been damaged; of these, 16 have been repaired, while work is ongoing on the remaining two. Although officials claimed that both projects would be restored within the next three days, the local political authority expressed doubts about whether the work could be completed within that timeframe.
