News

A group of fishermen in Hambantota claimed the boats offered to them as tsunami relief assistance were not seaworthy or had faults in their manufacture.

Around 20 fishermen had complained to the Chamber of Commerce, some saying there were a few cracks in their boats while others wanted boats of a different type. The boats had been donated by the National Development Bank (NDB).

“There were about 20 complaints made by the fishermen, regarding the boats they received from the Chamber of Commerce,” Hambantota Chamber of Commerce Director General Azmi Thaseem said.

However, an NDB spokesman said the boats were seaworthy and were manufactured by Laugfs Engineering (Pvt) Ltd., at its boat yard in Mabima, according to a design certified by a Government-approved marine engineer. “A meeting arranged through the Hambantota Chamber of Commerce, between the 20 fishermen and the Laugfs technical team and an independent team of engineers nominated by both parties concluded there was no design fault,” the spokesman said.

The engineering team discovered cracks only on two boats, and poor bonding on a few others, he said.

He said even though NDB agreed to repair the boats free of charge, under the two year warranty, the fishermen insisted they be replaced with a brand called ‘Dolphin’. Laughs Engineering together with NDB have volunteered to repair all damaged boats in batches of three, since the boats’ entire structure had to be changed for them to resemble the ‘Dolphin’ brand which the fishermen had requested.

“The NDB is willing to repair these boats but unfortunately the fishermen are not willing to accompany them to the boat yard as they want immediate replacements on the grounds that fishing is their only source of income,” Mr Thaseem said.

Fears of LTTE activity in the area were confirmed after two motor cycles allegedly used by the pistol gang of the LTTE were found last week at Tillaiyadi in the Puttalam district, Chilaw police intelligence officers said.

The suspect taken into police custody with the two motor cycles has confessed they were bought from the Jaffna area. The two motor cycles had been repainted which seemed to indicate there was a purpose for it. Police investigations revealed that papers pertaining to one were forged.

The lead factory busted by the Vanathavillu police last week is said to have connections with the LTTE.

It appears that the Tigers were roaming in the Norochcholai, Kalpitiya, Udappuwa and Chilaw areas for some time now.