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by Uditha Kumarasinghe

Samurdhi Minister R.A.D. Sirisena yesterday said 200,000 genuinely poor Jana Saviya families who had not entered the Samurdhi movement due to various political reasons have been provided an opportunity to seek Samurdhi benefits through the submission of an appeal.

Addressing a press conference on the 100 days program of the Ministry, he said at present 400,000 Jana Saviya families have entered Samurdhi and obtained assistance.

According to the World Bank report, 35 per cent of Samurdhi recipients do not really deserve to be part of it. The Ministry has now implemented a countrywide survey at each divisional secretariat level to obtain details on all two million Samurdhi beneficiary families.

This would identify the genuinely poor who obtain Samurdhi relief and those who obtain Samurdhi benefits fraudulently. Deserving low income families who are not in the Samurdhi list can submit an appeal to rectify the injustice caused to them, he said.

The Minister said:" The sole intention of the Government is to depoliticise the Samurdhi movement. Samurdhi should only be for the genuinely poor. This is the concept of the new Government."

He said the Samurdhi card will be issued to the Samurdhi beneficiary families only for three months with effect from January to March this year. This card will be issued only through the Divisional Secretaries. This would make fraudulent Samurdhi recipients reluctant to come to the Divisional Secretariats.

In relation to the ongoing peace process of the Government, avenues will be opened to strengthen the Samurdhi banks in North-East areas. The objective of the Ministry is to establish 70 Samurdhi Bank Societies in the North-East.

Arrangements have been made to open 12 Samurdhi banks in North-East within a few days under the 100 Days program of the Government including Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Vavuniya and Ampara areas, the Minister added.

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