Financial Times

Austin A 50s parked in a taxi stand in Kilinochchi.

Jaffna's classic British cars
By Suren Gnanaraj
If you're planning to visit the north anytime soon, and are worried about spending a fortune to move about in the city, just relax, for there is cost effective transport aplenty.

In fact the city is just swamped with eager taxi drivers willing to chauffeur you in royal style in some of Britain's finest cars of yesteryear, the Austin A 50 and the popular Morris Oxford for a reasonable fee of Rs. 2,000 a day. I couldn't help but notice how well maintained these cars were, given the fact that finding motor spare parts for such models was as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack.

You will be amazed when you see these old beauties in glossy black and majestic blue or green whizzing past you in the busy streets of Jaffna, blaring their horns to alert the carefree cyclists to move out of the way. What intrigues me most, is how did people manage to maintain these cars in the midst of what was literally a war zone, with connections to the outside world of cheap fuel and original spare parts completely sealed off.

Jagadheeshwaran owns a 43-year-old Morris Oxford, which he bought in 1992 at a cost of Rs. 85,000 to run a taxi service for tourists in Jaffna. At a time when a litre of petrol was selling at a staggering Rs. 89, Jagadheeshwaran had no option but to look for avenues in which he could make a sizeable return as well as save on fuel. He decided to modify his carburettor and convert his engine to run on kerosene oil.
He opens the bonnet of the car and shows me his invention.

The conversion from petrol to kerosene oil requires four additional gaskets to the original gasket of the engine, together with a further addition of bigger manifolds to help maintain the heat generated from the kerosene oil.

The car pump tubes leading to the spark plugs are replaced with water pump tubes to provide additional sparks to help the ignition of the car. Jagadheeshwaran says that having survived through the difficult days, he has now learnt the art of further cost cutting by mixing kerosene oil with petrol, which is cheaper and more efficient. He says that spare parts were generally never a problem, since the Indian Ambassador car used identical spare parts, which he managed to bring down from India.

Vamadeva is a taxi driver in Kilinochchi, who owns a stunning black Austin A50, which he bought for Rs. 100,000 in 1993. He says that ever since the ceasefire agreement came into existence, business has been on the downward trend.
"Before the peace process began, taxi drivers were scared to operate in these areas, so I benefited a lot because I wasn't afraid. In fact, I even got myself a pass from the LTTE to operate on these roads," he said.

Following the re-opening of the A-9 highway, taxis have flooded the market, creating a competitive environment in which one can hardly earn a consistent income, he said. Vamadeva added that Austin spare parts were generally quite rare, but most of it was successfully duplicated thanks to the skill of his mechanic, he said.

Currently, though all taxis levy nearly the same amount for a day, the vast influx of vehicles may see a significant drop in hiring charges in the future. So, when you do visit the region and you need a tour round the city, travel with comfort, safety and speed in Jaffna's British limousines.

Gold jewellery still banned in Jaffna!
Gold still remains banned by the LTTE in Jaffna, despite the truce, the re-opening of the A-9 highway and the free flow of goods from the south to the north. Jewellers in the north have been forced to buy gold at black market prices in order to meet the increasing demand for gold jewellery in the region.

Several new jewellery stores have been set up in the heart of Jaffna, attracting hundreds of customers daily, with their bright lights and colourful signboards. A walk down Stanley Road, leads one to Piranaka Jewellery Workshop, a small jewellery craft shop, which hand crafts and designs gold jewellery for its selective clientele. Proprietor Sundaram Pathmanathan, whose father set up the business 20 years ago, said that he is currently compelled to buy gold at Rs. 9,100 per sovereign from the black market, which is smuggling in gold biscuits into Jaffna. The ban was imposed after the LTTE began collecting two sovereigns from each family in 1990, which they re-sold to the market in order to raise funds to buy arms and ammunition.

Pathmanathan says that people in Jaffna have a "passion" for gold, and consider it to be an invaluable asset in life. Be it weddings, religious festivals or special events, gold is worn by both men and women alike, and forms a vital component of dowry, handed over to the prospective son-in-law. "Unlike in Colombo, people in Jaffna rarely buy silver, even though it may look trendier, for the reason that it has no long term monetary value," he said, stressing the reason why most locals constantly invested in gold sovereigns.

The workshop is in sharp contrast to a more state-of-the-art jewellery store in Colombo, but what is striking about this particular workshop is the beauty of its craftsmanship, with just the bare necessities. Due to the high cost of electricity, Pathmanathan uses a pot filled with burning charcoal, to heat an iron rod, akin to a soldering iron, which he uses to melt the gold.

Grooves, shapes and styles for his jewellery are formed by way of blowing into a metal tube, which ignites the charcoal, and helps him to mould the gold according to his desired pattern. Pathmanthan says that unlike in a sophisticated jewellery workshop in Colombo, which is equipped with the latest automated gadgetry, his workshop depended purely on the skill of his workforce, which was most often time consuming. Patterns for his jewellery are usually copied from the latest jewellery catalogues and magazines, but he says that some clients are willing to pay a bit extra to have their own original designs incorporated into their jewellery.

Pathmanathan has now passed on the techniques and skill of jewellery designing and crafting to his nephews, who have joined him to run the family business.
He smiles when I ask him about profits, and replies: "It's just enough to pay wages and earn a small income." Business reaches a peak during the wedding months of April, July, August and December, and is relatively marginal during the rest of the year, he said.

Pathmanathan said that for every Rs. 10,000 he makes through his sales, Rs. 300 is levied by the LTTE as tax. He says that once a permanent peace settlement comes into existence, the Jaffna town was likely to get busier and business would undoubtedly increase. He says that the success of the jewellery business depended on the outlook of the store. "People must set their sights on buying your jewellery within minutes of entering your store," he says, dejectedly admitting that the lack of capital continues to prevent him from modifying his store to look trendier and inviting.

Fishermen struggle to revive business
With the easing of fishing restrictions in the north, many displaced fishing communities have returned to their homes, but continue to face tremendous hardships due to the lack of funds in acquiring new fishing gear.

Most fishermen have either lost their fishing gear and boats, or they have been severely damaged as a result of heavy fighting in the area. Despite various authorities making several pleas to donors to help these fishermen acquire new fishing equipment, no steps have been taken to rehabilitate damaged vessels and equipment.

The garden leading to the Kurunagar Fishermen's Development Society (KFDS) fibreglass boat factory, is ample testimony to this fact with nearly 40-50 damaged fibreglass boats scattered in a disorderly manner and left to perish. Upon inquiry, we learnt that the entire value of those boats was over three million rupees, which could easily be repaired and sold for a reasonable price. However, no one seems to care.

S. Sithambaranathan, production manager of the fibreglass boat factory, said that the damaged boats had been abandoned on the shores by fishermen during the time of the displacement, and had been brought by the KFDS to the yard for safe keeping until the owners of these boats returned.

"We put several advertisements in the papers, with the registration numbers and description of these boats, but so far no one has responded," he said. When asked as to why his company had no intention of repairing these boats, and selling them off to poor fishermen at a cheaper rate, Sithambaranathan said that the KFDS was concerned that a person could claim ownership and acquire the boat, once it was finally restored, thereby resulting in a financial loss to the company.

"Therefore, we have opted to let those boats perish, rather than take that risk in repairing them," he said. A brand new fibreglass boat without the motor costs Rs. 105,000, with the raw materials for manufacture brought from Colombo costing Rs. 85,000. A brand new boat is likely to last up to 35-40 years. The KFDS factory commenced operations just seven months ago, and has already sold 54 boats to fishermen in the region.

A fibreglass boat can be made in the space of four days, and seems relatively easy to make. Each part of the boat has a corresponding mould upon which the workman would apply and paste the fibre sheets. Once the fibre is dry, it is removed from the mould and connected together using nuts and bolts to make the boat.

Sithambaranathan said that the company was currently manufacturing only 18-foot boats, but had plans to expand its operations to manufacture the larger 32-foot boats. "We are still reluctant to expand our business because of the naval fishing restrictions in some areas, which stifles the potential growth of our industry." (SG)

Farmers still wary of mines
Farmers in Jaffna are still reluctant to till their fields because of the fear of mines despite the potential to make good money by sending their produce to the south and foreign aid pledges to revive agriculture.

The World Bank has allocated Rs. 400 million to help rehabilitate 240 agricultural tanks in Jaffna next year. It had allocated Rs. 400 million for the same purpose last year, but this was subsequently slashed to Rs. 80 million, with bank officials insisting on a full scale feasibility study being conducted in the region, prior to the disbursement of funds.

Assistant Commissioner of the Agrarian Services Department K. Sundersan said that this money would be utilized to help repair damaged bunds of tanks, remove sea water which has infiltrated into these tanks and deal with issues of salinity in the irrigation water.

The northern peninsula has nearly 25,000 agro wells and 986 ponds, which feed from the abundant source of underground water, which is in contrast to the gravity irrigation system in the south.

Sundersan said that the rehabilitation of these tanks would strengthen the arm of the Jaffna farmer, who has long suffered as a result of the war. He said that Jaffna farmers had been adversely affected as a result of the cessation of the fertilizer subsidy. "A bag of urea costs Rs. 600 in Medawachchiya, but the high transport cost results in the Jaffna farmer paying Rs. 950 per bag, which is unfair," he said.

Nearly 8,500 hectares of paddy land has been cultivated, out of a total of 12,500 hectares. Farmers have been reluctant to cultivate in the remaining 4,000 hectares as a result of mines, or the displacement of their families or as a result of such areas coming under the high security zone.

"Many of the farmers were displaced time and again, have lost their equipment and also lack funds to start their cultivation," he said. Following the last displacement in 1998, the entire Thenamarachchi division consisting of 5,250 hectares of paddy land has not been cultivated. "I believe the Army has given permission to cultivate 1,000 hectares from next year, but farmers are still cautious of mines," Sundersan said.

A further 7,516 hectares of highlands have also been used to cultivate onions, banana and tobacco. Only 700 hectares have been used so far to grow onions, and the total produce is estimated at 700 tonnes, despite the regional consumption being 3,500 tonnes.

Sundersan said that increased cultivation could see the surplus produce causing a drastic reduction in the cost of vegetables and fruits, despite the high transportation cost to the south. He said that it was now time for the northern farmers to think beyond survival and breakaway from traditional farming methods into high yield crops.

He said that an ideal start would be to introduce white rice in addition to the brown rice, which is being cultivated in the region. "With the re-opening of the A-9 route, we finally have a market to sell our produce and we hope the government will set up a storage facility in the region which will help us store our excess produce."

Sundersan said that the Agrarian Services Department recently donated 2,500 water pumps and 150 tractors to farmers in Jaffna with the assistance of the Swedish International Development Agency, and was currently drafting several other proposals to provide more farmers with better agricultural equipment.

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