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#20

Flats and Apartments
From : Shahzadi Jalaldeen
2010-09-15 14:48:21
News :It is ironic how things can take a turn over time.Twenty years back people living in flats were rated as second class citizens.But now an apartment
which has the same features as flats but with modern fittings are sold for millions of Rupees is much more expensive than houses and is turning out to be a new fad. In the United States Apartments are the first unit of housing as you move higher up in the ladder you always move into a house. Wonder why there is such a demand for apartments even less than houses? I prefer to have a house which I can convert to an apartment later if needed than have an apartment which is immovable.

#18

Government doctors and dengue fever

Kaushalya
Telephone : 0773043111
2010-08-06 16:48:21

As a regular reader of your news paper i was saddened by the news item on dengue fever that was published last weekend. I sympathize with Danushan's family for their loss. But I think this kind of article can make the general public lose their confidence in the government health service which i think is far superior to the private sector when it comes to management of acute medical and surgical conditions.

I think this type of article appears in the media simply because the lack of knowledge among the general public about the natural causes of dengue fever and how it is diagnosed. As doctors we know it is not possible to diagnose dengue fever by doing one full blood count, which is the test most doctors depend on to manage dengue fever. Sometimes you need to continue doing these blood tests daily or even more often until you see the changes typical of dengue. These blood tests, whether they are done in the government hospitals or private hospitals cannot diagnose dengue until these typical changes appear.

Of course there are other tests which are available to diagnose dengue which are not freely available in the government sector, and these tests also have there limitations in diagnosing and these are more expensive than a full blood count.

I find it very disheartening to see people waiting to find fault with the doctors and highlight it in the media without knowing how much work a doctor does to save a patient's life. I don't think that people know that a house-officer who is working at Lady Ridgway starts his ward rounds by 5 or 6 in the morning and goes on to work through the night when he is on call and continues working the next day until four in the evening before he gets a break. The working hours are the same for a middle grade doctor working in the hospital as well. A consultant is responsible for all the patients (sometimes around 130-150) in the ward as well as the management of the ward & for the actions of his or her juniors. I can only imagine the stress they go through day and night.

When a dengue patient is in the ward doctors monitor the patient day and night sometimes every hour or half hour depending on the patient's condition. At Lady Ridgway at any given time there are about 10-20 dengue patients in a medical ward. So as you can imagine the doctors who are on call hardly get any sleep, but they come to work the next day and do their duty to the patient. This is the same in all government hospitals in the country.

Although the number of admissions to a ward has increased with the dengue outbreak, the number of doctors working in these hospitals remain the same. If a similar thing had happened in any other profession, unions would have staged strikes claiming a violation of workers' rights. But the government medical officers union doesn't even make an issue of it in public as it is a body which not only thinks about its membership but also the service the doctors have to provide the people of this country. When doctors go on strike there are a lot of people waiting to ridicule them but nobody appreciates the work done by the government doctors in this country at a time the country is faced with this dengue epidemic.
The message I want to give as a doctor is if the wrong message goes to the people regarding government hospitals we will have less work, but the common man will suffer by not coming to a government hospital. The service provided by the government sector hospital including the ICU treatment may cost a patient even fifty thousand rupees a day in a private hospital!

#18

Development of Kandy

Rahula Gunasekera
Telephone : 520-247-6576
2010-08-06 16:44:25

I am happy to see the emphasis on developing Kandy town. I can only hope that the Bogambara prison building is not demolished, but included in the development as a hotel or shopping complex.

I also hope that the wildlife around the lake are left alone as a tourist attraction. I have not seen quite that density of wild life anywhere else in the world. In particular, the fruit bats have always been part of the character of Kandy town. In Houston Texas the nightly bat migrations attracts thousands of spectators.

#18

Street vendors and pavements
From : Kamal Tennakoon
On The 19th I walked to the University of Kelaniya. It was encouraging to see small pavements on either side of the road for people to walk.

They were narrow but they were there. Most of the people did not walk on them; they were jay walking in real Sri Lankan style. As I walked further, I found why?
There were three vendors trading rice packets. Was it meant for them? I wonder.

#17

Our Dilapidated Road
From : Praneetha Perera
Telephone : 0777582716
News :Aney how many times I have reported to the media that our road, Lady Evelyn De Soysa Road, Idama, Moratuwa is in dilapidated condition for a long time. Once we know that they started to repair it from Sikarat Companiya end, but ultimately everything stopped. It didnt come to our end. We heard that the items allocated to repair the road have been given to a temple for its repairs. Even after that I told this to several people but they were in dead ears. I shall be grateful the authorities concerned put things right, because we are having a terrible time, we cannot go in a three wheeler and we get body aches and pains because of the dilapidated road. Our vehicles get damaged due to this situation. Please please help us.

#16

Democracy in Sri Lanka needs a change
From : Sirilal Ranasinghe
Telephone : 03008207896
Sri Lanka had been a symbol of democratic model of government where division of powers was observed and respected before the new constitution was introduced in 1977. However, the cabinet being selected from elected members of the legislature did undermine the concept of division of powers to an extent making it only two powers - Executive + Legislature and Judiciary. With the introduction of the post of executive president who is immune to prosecution and being the head of the cabinet which is part of the legislature has concentrated both legislative and executive powers into one unit of power said above. The Judiciary has lost its equality with the other two powers of government, rather weakened in the face of the executive presidential powers which emanates directly from the people and not responsible to the legislature.

When the president belongs to a political party and when that particular party has a majority in the parliament two thirds of the power accumulates in one place - the presidency. This situation that existed during the time when Mr. J.R. Jayawardane was president has emerged again with the landslide election victory of the present governing party led by the President Mahinda Rajapaksha. With such powers in hand a government can either do the greatest service the people or use that same power to serve individuals. The trend seems to have been the latter after the present constitution came into being in 1978.

The American constitution clearly separates the three pillars of power while bestowing them with equal authority to serve the people as independent entities. The legislature has enormous powers to pass laws and authorize funds to run the country while the President has the authority to have his own cabinet and execute the laws passed by the parliament and use funds for the purposes intended. The President, though elected directly by the people has to obtain approval from the parliament which is also elected by the people; however, the president has the authority to ignore the will of the legislature in some exceptional cases and the procedure is clearly enshrined in the constitution. The Judiciary exercises its power independently without fear or favor. There is no room left for one power to infringe on the authority of another.

Sri Lanka needs this type of constitution as the British democratic system has failed in our country where the executive and legislative powers are mixed up and the members of parliament are able to walk into government departments and use their authority upon the government servants without following protocol; that is going through the Minister or through a law passed by the parliament or ignore the decisions made by the court. The official hierarchy is not respected. The public servants have lost their luster and dignity. We have seen instances where direct intervention of elected members and members of the public by walking into government institutions by force. This is a dangerous trend that will lead to corruption, nepotism or a total breakdown of the system and anarchy.

The present president is in position to provide the right direction and lead the country to prosperity by restoring respect, dignity and authority to the three pillars of democracy where one is free from undue interference by another. The practice of selecting the cabinet from among members of parliament should be eliminated so that the legislature will only pass laws, the executive will put the laws in to practice and the judiciary will interpret the laws and ensure that they are followed properly.

The president will be as powerful as the president of USA and also use his full powers in situations that warrant extra powers. Our president did it during the final stages of war against LTTE. He could do it not by powers vested in him by the constitution but by holding the parliament together to support him by providing cabinet positions for most of the MPs. This is not needed in USA. The present two thirds majority should be used to correct the errors committed in 1977.

#15

Pavement hawkers
News :It is heartening to note that the authorities have come down hard on the pavement hawkers,who are more of a nuisance than anything else. It is also hoped that they will not succumb to political pressure or otherwise and let them reinstate themselves. The attempt to relocate them in the so called world market complex a couple of years ago, has not had the desired results. Some, nay, most of them made a fast buck on the deal by reselling the allocated plots to other mudalalis at exorbitant prices. Hawking has to stop once and for all, for the greater good of the community, at large. A good start, it seems and it is hoped that it will keep pace with the developments.
From : a.wickramsinghe
Telephone : 8149337917

#14

Protect Our Oceans
From : Rahula Gunasekera
The North East coast of Sri Lanka, once inaccessible, is now the favorite
destination for most locals.

The Northern and Eastern shores being virtually unexploited for over 25
years have the most pristine marine habitats in Sri Lanka, this isolation
inadvertently turned this area into perhaps the largest marine protected
area in the Indian Ocean.

Since the people living in these areas have always made a living from the
sea, making the whole North Eastern coast a marine protected area is
impractical. It will be up to the government to identify the critical marine
habitats in the North and East and provide protection to these areas. As
citizens we can also do our part to guarantee the protection of these
resources.

We must be mindful of our impact on these marine habitats and the people
living in these areas and do our best to minimize these negative effects.
When we visit places far from our homes we must consider ourselves tourists,
tourists treat the environment, people and their traditions with respect.
Sri Lanka is a tropical Island and plants grow fast on land however, under
the ocean flora and fauna grow at a much slower rate. The coral under the
sea that provides habitat for fish takes thousand of years to grow and for
that reason we must not take coral or any other marine creature as
souvenirs.

We must also make sure that we do not disturb marine creatures such as
turtles that come up on the beach, they spend most of their energy finding
food and any disturbance could cause them trauma.

Plastic bags and bottles must be disposed away from the marine animals that
would ingest them. Just imagine if everyone that went to Yala took a tree
or an animal and left litter behind, what that would do to our national
park? When we go back home we can still help to protect our marine habitats.
We must educate ourselves to the state of the marine environment, we should
find out which species of fish are on endangered species list and avoid
consuming those species.

We must minimize the use of plastics and chemicals that will eventually find
their way to the oceans. We should also think about the future of our oceans
by aspiring towards marine related jobs such as Marine Biology. We should
also speak up for the creatures that inhabit the oceans such as the Dugong
and Turtle that are on the brink of extinction in Sri Lanka.

As the caretaker of these creatures we must do all we can to ensure their
survival by providing sanctuaries for them. Sri Lanka reserves over 25% of
its area as sanctuaries for land animals and less that 1% of the ocean for
marine creatures. In the long run protecting the flora and the fauna of the
oceans will not only create good Karma, but also ensure good paying jobs in
tourism, science and fisheries.

#14

Price cuts need guarantee
From : Hiran Hettiarachchi

It's heartning to note that the prices of essential food items are tumbling down and to finish it off the government has reduced the price of petrol and gas. The main question is, IS IT ONLY AN ELECTION GIMMICK ? or will the prices stabilize to give the common man a sigh of relief. Could the two main rivals give a guarantee to the people that the prices brought will stay o one more year after assuming duties?

#13

Will the FEB bust Kuwait insurance scam?
With regard to Chandani Kirinde's article 'Police powers for FEB officials' in the Sunday Times of September 20, I must say that the first group of people who should be arrested by the Foreign Employment Bureau (FEB) are the people involved in the Kuwait Insurance scam. It is alleged a group of individuals swindled KWD 42 out of a purported insurance premium of KWD 50.

#12

Heart of the South……

The city of Galle which is considered as the heart of the southern province is brimming with history and provides much to keep the visitors occupied and also attracts foreigners as well as locals.

The Dutch Fort, gem museum, and the Unawatuna beach, one of the best beaches in the world, are some of the important places in Galle. It is also a predominantly a fishing town.

Bordering the fort on the land side is the world famous Galle International Cricket Stadium. Sadly the 2004 Tsunami completely devastated the Cricket ground and the ground was reconstructed recently.

Galle is also famous for handycrafts. Galle is famous for its lace which carries a long history. The lace has also been exported to foreign countries as well. Little shops in Galle still offer the opportunity to buy lace mats, tablecloths etc.

The amazing masks which are used for traditional dance are another important industry in Galle. Ambalangoda is a famous town for carving of masks used in exorcism ceremonies and several forms of dance.

There are many places for you to have a superb meal or a snack, such as the Light House hotel, the Fort Printers Hotel in Galle Fort as well as Closenberg Hotel and many more.

Galle is an interesting and wonderful place to visit.
Fathima Shazra Fulail,
Kandy.

#11

Image of Sri Lanka

From : Hiran Hettiarachchi

On my visit to Sri Lanka in August, I had the privilege of visiting Sigiriya, Dambulla, Anuradhapura, Nuwara Eliya and other cities.

One thing that comes to mind of anyone visiting Sri Lanka is how much public money is spent to boost the image of the President whose picture is seen at every corner, every junction and every town of the country. May be the President might not be aware of all this, but at least his loyalists should make this known.

It's true that the Govt. has put an end to terrorism, but one just can't put images and images to remind the people about it. If the people want to pay back, they'll do it at the time of the election.

At a time like this every cent counts and what I personally saw was that there are many people suffering to make ends meet now than before. So I think all this money wasted could have been chanelled to help those in need.

Another thing that I noticed during my stay in Sri Lanka was that buildings had no solar energy plants. Over here in Europe people make the maximum use of the little sun light they get. If all Govt. establishments use solar energy, the people who visit these establishments will try to adopt it in their homes.

#10

Importance of OIL and COAL in Power Generation in Sri Lanka
By K.Gnanalingam former Addl GM Commercial CEB

The importance of oil as an energy source can hardly be exaggerated and it is difficult to imagine a world without oil, notwithstanding the relentless search for affordable alternatives. The world as we know is heavily dependent on relatively cheap oil. Experience tells us that any sharp increase in the prices of oil would have a negative effect on the world economy.

Oil prices have been extremely volatile. The first "oil shock" in 1973 pales in comparison with subsequent sharp increases. Oil prices per barrel breached the $40 level in 1980, before plunging to slightly above the $10 benchmark in 1985. During the Gulf War in 1990, oil prices shot up but fell short of $40 per barrel, after which prices trended down again close to the $10 mark in 1998. In an apparent aftermath of the war in Iraq and the war on terror, oil prices have reached an all-time high of over $42 per barrel before cooling somewhat.

Oil prices have been hitting the roof of late, mainly because of increased demand from China and some supply disruptions in the oil producing countries. The world is much better position to face an oil shock today than it was in the 1970's because oil intensity has reduced considerably over that period of time. The COAL price was said by then Generation Planning experts as to be independent of oil price. They claimed to have much more stable price for COAL in recommending same for Sri Lanka.20 years back

Oil has been a major driving force in the dynamics of global politics and economics. Being a major driver of growth, oil is also one of the most potential causes of conflict. This report on the Assets & Politics in the Oil Industry assesses the global markets for oil, the power that lies behind the countries possessing these natural reserves and the global politics that are driving the market. Based on factual data and analysis, an impartial look into the landmark events fostered by the production and distribution of oil is important. Economic perspective of oil is in the analysis of the benefits that accrues through the production of oil and its impact on the global economy. Today the oil has again gone past $72/B. The COAL price is also truly following the oil price. In Sri Lanka the petrol subsidises the kerosene used for lighting by rural poor. People use Kerosene with some LUB oil mixed to make cheap diesel. The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation CPC is running at a loss the Ceylon Electricity Board CEB is also running at a loss. The GOSL taxes the imported fuels and the import duty and levies is high as 35 to 45% depending on the fuel.

The CEB owes money to CPC for fuel bought for Thermal Generation of power. Both corporations are on over draft at very high interest rates of the order of 14% from the state owned Bank of Ceylon and the Peoples Bank.. CEB's over draft is more than Rs70 Billion. Time to time treasury releases some money to these institutions. Due to lack of funds the Transmission and distribution systems of CEB are not well developed and the losses in these areas are high as 15%. Tariff increases are not approved by GOSL to make CEB financially viable. CEB is politically forced to undertake nonviable low income generating rural electrification programs and it has done more than 2500 such schemes
Government of Sri Lanka GOSL bought war equipment both from China and India.

Now China is giving on very low interest a loan to obtain a 900MW Polluting COAL plant and the people's money which filed the Chinas treasury is funding this cheap (Low interest) loan. At the same time India who also sold war equipment to SL is trying to install another Polluting COAL plant 900MW in Trincomale with a DC submarine 1000 MW Link to India. All these are on low interest loans. Our total demand is about 2000 MW now and we may have to export the excess energy to India at very small price as the electricity price is very low in India. Most of their electrical power comes from their cheap home grown bad quality coal. In this exercise we will get all the pollution from mercury, arsenic, sulfur, ash and the CO2 and India will buy electricity at cheaper price.

The latest is that we are going to get less polluting 600MW of LNG Gas turbine plants close to Colombo with Gas coming from Australia which is giving a costly GAS handling port free. The private company to originate this project is headed by our former Navy commander! CEB engineers claim that there were no LOI issued for these projects forget about any quotations as well. We are now saddled with very costly emergency Power generators and costly Private power plants all working on imported costly heavily taxed liquid fuel. Only 45% of the energy comes from our large Hydros. The delay in the construction of the COAL plant which has taken more than 20 years to start construction mainly due to environmental objections has resulted in these costly thermal plants in the country. The cost from all these private power liquid fueled power generation over these 20 years has to be added to the cost of this coal plant. The ill advised Minister claims that the COAL plant will only cost Rs 7/kWh when it is commissioned. Some feel with taxes and import duties at the present approved GOSL rates for coal that has to be imported the Generation cost could be higher than Rs 20/kWh as it is feared the oil price will soon go to $140/Barrel .

Many forget the facts of internal fights between the mechanical and electrical engineers in CEB this costs money due to neglect of the plant maintenance and operation.. There is also the recent strike threat by CEB staff asking for there once in 3 year salary rise even though many feel that CEB employees get the best salary in Sri Lanka next to the Banks. No one understands the value of a well trained operator of a power plant. In a well maintained foreign plant these staff get more than 10 times the salary paid hear All private power plants were on Commercial loans which made them further costly instead of soft loan funded projects and there staff are paid well. Many former CEB staffs are involved in the construction commissioning and operation of these private plants in Sri Lanka and they are all well paid. .

These Private Power was bought at an average price of about Rs 21.40. Some plants costing nearly as high as Rs 35/kWh in the North in 2008.. Comparatively the CEB thermal plants including the Gas turbine used for peaking only coasted about Rs16.50 for the fuel and the cheapest plant coasted less than Rs12.50/kWh. This plant fuel cost was only Rs1 when it was commissioned and saw an increase in cost of 75% from 2007 to 2008. Many made money in bringing the Emergency and Private power plants. The latter were brought by the advice of lending institutions. Emergency plants were brought to avoid costly Power cuts with the excuse that it will cost the economy of the country. This is the plight of a developing country today. India will never allow Sri Lanka to develop soon and wants to keep under its control..

Sri Lanka should start using the freely much available Solar Energy to get out of all these problems

Title :Tribute to our Soldiers
By: Audrey Barber
You gave up the bosom of your home
Gave up the love of family
Not knowing when you'll see them again
Most of all you gave up your beautiful youth