News
Housing for poor family
View(s):Mrs. Ranjani Wanigaratne, (wife of Kochchikade Pradeshiya Sabha member Wanigaratne), at a simple ceremony held last week, handed over the keys of a new house built by the Udangawa Grama Sangwardana Samithiya Kochchikade to 38-year-old Ms. Sagarika Dilhani Fernando, last week.
Ms. Fernando, mother of 2 kids aged 13 and 10 years -a domestic help by occupation- has, with her meagre wages, to support her ailing mother also. Her husband died a few years ago of a kidney ailment.
Speaking at the event of the handing over of the keys of the new house, she said the house valued at Rs. 600,000/- was in reality ‘a blessing from God’.
“This is a great thing you have done for us she said. Now I can live in the safety of my own home with my two children,” she said.
Speaking at the ceremony
Mr Francis Aththachchi Chairman of the Udangawa Grama Sangwardana Samithiya said, ‘each year the association builds a house for a needy family who has no steady income.
We spend Rs 450,000.00 from funds we raise via donations from villagers in the area. We also receive Rs 100,000/- from the Government’ he said.
He added that this was the 5th house the society built and donated to a needy family in the area. The chairman announced there were around 65 families other needy families were living in similar stressful situations in the area.
The chairman mentioned a problem facing the society was that the other needy families did not possess land to construct houses. He called on philanthropists to help purchase suitable blocks of land on which the council could build homes for them.
K.L. Richard Walter Perera
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