Mahinda Chinthanaya brings plantation Tamils into national main stream - Jeyaraj

BY P. RAJARATNAM in Nuwara Eliya

THE two day Tamil Sahithya Vizha was concluded with a note of 'New Chinthanaya for a new Hill Country'. The celebrations were held at the New Town Hall with all pomp and pageant, where thousands of schoolchildren drawn out from Matale, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya districts took part with their cultural and traditional displays.

The Chief Guest Minister of Trade, Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Jeyaraj Fernandopulle who made his maiden speech in Tamil on the occasion said that the plantation population including the younger up and coming generation were kept as tea pluckers and estate workers by their plantation leaders without any scope for their human development.

He said the aim and objective of President Mahinda Rajapakse has appeared in his Mahinda Chinthanaya, that they should be developed and encouraged and brought into the national main stream of the country.

Towards such direction the President has spell out a number of schemes and guidelines for their education, health, living conditions and modern housing schemes.

The Minister said towards achieving such goals, Ministers like C. B. M. Ratnayake, S. Arulsamy and others have been appointed.

He added that leaders may come and go, but the Government and President have ensured that those leaders who joined his government at the height of his election campaigns will remain in their given positions.

Fernandopulle reminded that the ongoing development works relating to supply of electricity, housing, development of highways and other development perspectives in the plantation sector were all undertaken by the government, but they (CWC) cannot take credit for them.

He said the Government's aim and objective was to create the necessary environment for all communities to live in peace and amity.

However, he strongly refuted certain sections trying to cause a rift in such process by visiting the North and East. He said the Government is confident that the Geneva peace talks will create unity and stability.

He congratulated the high standards displayed by the up and coming children from the plantation sector and advised them to embark on education for a career.

The Provincial Chief Minister Sarath Ekanayake, who traced the history relating to the educational aspects among the plantation children said that it was most fitting and appropriate that the President of the country, and the Government has explored all avenues to give a fair deal to the development of education. He said he was happy that S. Arulsamy was doing a good job of work towards this goal .

Tikiri Kobbekaduwa, Governor of the Central Province congratulated the organisers of the Sahithya Vizha, and said that the new emerging leaders have come out with a view to ensure the plantation workers freedom and assert their identity.

He emphasised that the plantation children should be given priority in education and an opportunities safeguard their cultural heritage and values. C. B. Ratnayake, Minister of Plantation Infrastructure, said that his aim and goal was to bring out this important segment of the workforce, who brought in the much wanted foreign exchange, from the shackles of the plantation leadership, into freedom and stability. S. Arulsamy, the Provincial Minister said that within two months of his assuming office, the Sahithya Vizha was inaugurated, and thanked the Provincial Council administration for its unstinted co-operation and goodwill extended.

His mission was to uplift the educational perspectives of the plantation children to their highest level.

The Assistant Indian High Commissioner Rajan Pillay, said that the Indian Government will give all assistance towards the development of education of the plantation children.

Prof. V. Arasu of the University of Madras, said in India in the Northern part, the people think that the Tamils were only from Jaffna, and they do not know that there are a million people of Indian origin in this part of the country.

Hence, his mission to educate them on this, the Professor said hat those who migrated from India to other countries were to use their physical might, or the brain.

He said the plantation workers have over the years developed themselves to the present state and he was confident that they will further develop themselves in their educational pursuits.

V. Gunanathan, Asst. Secretary of the World Tamil Research Institute of Malaysia, W. M. Yasamana, Chairman of the Central Provincial Council, Mayor of Nuwara Eliya Chandralal Karunaratne among those who spoke.

Fifty leading citizens and professionals were honoured for their services in the districts.