RADA commends Hayleys for rebuilding Kathaluwa school

The G.V.S. de Silva Primary School with 500 students at Kathaluwa, Galle which was destroyed by the tsunami has been rebuilt by Hayleys Ltd on a relocated site.

From a perspective of social responsibility, building the school is one of the company’s biggest humanitarian operations to date, the Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA) said last week.

RADA chairman Tiran Alles was quoted as saying the commitment shown by Hayleys Limited in rebuilding this tsunami affected school is commendable. The project has taken only one year to complete and the quality of the buildings are also of very high standard, he said. .

RADA, which is facilitating and monitoring the reconstruction of tsunami affected schools, said the G.V.S de Silva School in Kathaluwa is the ninth school to be rebuilt after the tsunami disaster that destroyed 182 schools in Sri Lanka’s coastal districts. From the remaining affected schools, work is progressing in 50% of the schools whilst 45 % of them are in the designing and planning stage.

Hayleys Chairman Rajan Yatawara said the project to build the school began in May 2005 and was accelerated and completed within one year, which is a significant achievement. The buildings spanned a total area of 34,000 sq. feet and Hayleys spent Rs.75 million on the project. The fully furnished school comprises of 15 classrooms, an assembly hall, an administration office, science laboratory, computer centre, music/art/dance rooms, and a library. The company has made arrangements to help the school to maintain the buildings and a fund, “Hayleys Foundation Guarantee Limited” has been created for this purpose.

After the tsunami disaster, Hayleys has assisted the affected communities in many ways, he said. The employees of Hayleys contributed their daily wage to conduct relief efforts.