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No place for the dead
Whilst the beautiful stretches of beach at Kalpitiya are being turned into tourist resorts, Senawadiya, a village on the coast is being turned into an attraction tourists would not want to see a cemetery. As a result of the Forest Conservation Department taking over a stretch of land that was used as a cemetery, bodies are now being buried on the beach.
This bizarre activity continues as villagers have failed to persuade the authorities to grant them alternate land for a cemetery.
“As a result we are forced to bury our dead on the beach which is disrespecting the dead. “There are around 100 families and we are helpless,” said Shashika Pushpakumara, a villager.
Rangana Fernando, the Secretary of the Kalpitiya Pradeshiya Sabha, said the local body did not have power to acquire land for a cemetery. He said this function came under the purview of the Provincial Council.
“There are several illegal settlements on state lands in the area; we will try to get a piece of land to be used as a cemetery,” he said.
 An unwanted spectacle: Villagers forced to bury their dead on the beach |
 Bizarre: Villagers prepare a grave by the sea shore |
 With the cemetery taken over, helpless villagers have no other place to bury their dead |
 This land acquired by the Forest Conservation Dept. originally served as the cemetery in the area |
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