|
I write with reference to two recent articles in the Daily News and
The Sunday Observer titled ‘Home garden coconut project launched’ and
‘Land fragmentation hits nut cultivation’ respectively.
They refer to Minister D.M. Jayaratne’s plan to set up Coconut home
gardens as a way of increasing coconut production in the country and
tightening the laws with respect to fragmentation of coconut lands in
excess of ten acres.
An optimal nut production is achieved only after a coconut tree is
about 10 years old.
Thus, even if successfully implemented, the rise in coconut
production and hence a fall in prices of nuts cannot be expected in the
short term. Firstly, this assumes that the seedlings supplied are of
good quality.
However, there is much to be desired as to the quality of seedlings
supplied during the last few years by the Coconut Development Board
nurseries.
Secondly, young palms need to be well looked after with attention to
pest control, fertilising and weed control.
Will home gardeners do this? One has only to look at what happened to
the well maintained coconut estates taken over following implementation
of the Land Reform Act and distributed among the landless.
In the area where I live, recipients of such lands have cut down many
of the coconut trees and some have even sold the clay on the land! If
this home garden project is to succeed, there needs to be continuous
monitoring with necessary advice and support to those who are given the
seedlings.
What of tightening the laws? A previous Minister had proposed that a
charge of Rs. 25,000 be made to issue a permit to fell a coconut tree
less than 60 years old.
A most impracticable suggestion. Is one to count the number of rings
on the bark and determine age of each and every tree to be felled?
What about trees which have begun to taper and are not producing
nuts, those hit by lightening etc. Given the fact that bribery and
corruption is all pervading, legal means are not a solution.
Avaricious so-called land developers and even multi-nationals will
always have their way.
What the State and its authorities should do is to look in to why
small to medium coconut land owners sell their lands.
The reasons are many and include on the one hand low profitability
due to a combination of high cost of production particularly cost of
fertiliser, cost of weed control, low productivity and high cost of
labour, theft of nuts, etc all of which contribute to the plateauing of
annual nut production level at around 2.9 billion nuts and on the other,
the relatively low farm gate price for nuts.
The profit per nut is not more than Rs. 3 to 4. With the average nut
production at less than 3,000 nuts/acre, the annual profit is at best
less than Rs. 12,000 per acre. Many coconut lands are still in the hands
of traditional landowning families.
The younger generation of such landowners are often professionals,
many living abroad and reluctant to spend time looking after their
lands.
The easy way out for the parents is to sell the land at prices
ranging from Rs. 600,000 to over 1.6 million/acre especially in the
Gampaha District. Rupees six hundred thousand invested in Treasury Bills
will today give an income of Rs. 102,000 with no sweat.
While establishing home gardens may reach out to a very large number
of voters and hence is a good political move, the solution lies in
formulating a long-term strategy to increase nut production in estates
between 10-50 acres especially. Subsidies must not be confined to mere
words.
We are yet to receive, the fertiliser subsidy, subsidy for husk pits
and subsidy for growing Glyricidia for 2006 all of which were announced
with much fanfare.
A nut takes three years to come to the stage at which it is plucked.
such strategies must not be a one off changing at the whims and fancies
of the Minister or high officials.
Giving a reasonable subsidy on fertiliser plus subsidies for soil and
water conservation in the form of digging of husk pits and cutting
contour drains and disc-harrowing hard soils will surely increase
yields.
Success of subsidies depends on careful monitoring of outcomes and
not on influence of the landowner.
I recently visited a 12 acre coconut land where the owner was looking
to carve out ten acres and sell the land at a fat profit.
The bags of young plant fertiliser obtained from the CDB remained
unused, the young palms had been neglected, some eaten away by cattle,
others destroyed during the drought.
Those not showing tangible benefits should be blacklisted.
A. S. DISSANAYAKE - Mellawagedera
Commuters on these routes face immense hardships during the peak rush
hour in the mornings and evenings. It is a common sign to see commuters
clinging dangerously on to buses thereby endangering their lives.
The elderly, ladies and children have also lately no chance of bus
travel on these routes during this peak rush hours.
Not all can afford to hire three-wheelers. Some may be able to avoid
rush hours but there are others who may be compelled to travel for
various reasons. Those badly affected are the senior citizens in these
areas.
This problem could be considerably eased by having a shuttle service
to and from Rajagiriya during peak hours.
W. J. SAMUEL – Rajagiriya
The Ambalangoda Rest House which was one of the much favoured Rest
Houses among the travellers along the Coastline in the Southern Province
has been closed for the past few months, much to the disappointment of
the regular motorists proceeding to the deep South and Colombo and also
among the sales representatives who come on business to Ambalangoda and
the suburban towns.
I think this Rest House is under the management of the UDA for the
past so many years. This Rest House was given on lease by the UDA, which
brought in a good revenue.
I think the Ambalangoda U.C. also got its share of revenue from the
UDA on a percentage basis. Several functions such as weddings, lunches
and dinners were held at this Rest House up to the time of closing, as
it was by the main road and early accessible.
This Rest House has a large number of rooms for visitors to stay
overnight. Long distance travellers used to break journey at this place
for a refreshing cup of tea and for some rest.
The main attraction of this Rest House is the natural swimming pool
by the sea, and is a crowd puller during the weekends. Long distance
travellers too, who were familiar with the pool will not fail to have a
dip in this pool with their family members and have lunch at this Rest
House.
This is a quiet place although close to the town and the main road.
Once you get into the premises you will not feel that you are in a busy
town.
The building is situated in an archaeological site which was under
the Dutch in the good old days. Yet we can see the large building near
the main entrance where the ‘Rural Courts’ once functioned. I have heard
that this building was used as the stables for the horses to rest when
the ‘Mail Coaches’ were running between Galle and Colombo during the
early days.
Even this Rest House building may have been a building constructed by
the Dutch when one studies the plan of this building, with large open
verandahs.
I think the Urban Council authorities should urge the UDA authorities
to call for tenders without delay and give this much sought after Rest
House to someone who could manage this institution and pay the monthly
rent duly.
LIONEL L. LEANAGE – Ambalangoda
I wish to refer to the letter (DN June 21) under the above caption by
Dr. Tilak S. Fernando, who seems to be a true lover and sympathiser for
the Homoeopathic system, although he has not mentioned his nature of
identity as in the field of medicine or philosophy, yet whatever it may
be hats off to Dr. Tilak Fernando.
He has given the accurate facts that are presently prevailing in the
Homoeopathic Council; the present council has become a threat to the
institutionally qualified Homoeopaths who are in minority, as the
majority of the homoeopaths being from the non-institutionally qualified
(self taught), which includes the president and some members of the
council, owing to this, the majority types wants to dominate and
suppress the minority institutionally qualified and instead opt to
registered more and more self taught homoeopaths in order to form a vote
bank to remain in power in the council to dominate and misuse the
position for gain, as stated by Dr. Tilak.
Today the private foundation of the president of the Council is
mistaken for the Council by the unregistered homoeopaths who fall prey
to the demands and act by this so called foundation, these persons had
even been issued identity cards by this private foundation stating as
Registered Homoeopathic Practitioners in Sri Lanka which has been issued
charging a fee as membership, and these persons had been given the
assurance that they can practice Homeopathy with this identity card and
the council will not take any action as it is the same president of this
foundation who is also the president of the council.
Sometime back there had even been a public notice in one of the
Sinhala newspapers calling all unregistered homoeopaths to get
themselves registered with this so called foundation by paying a fee to
the private account of this foundation thereby misleading them of
getting registrations by the council.
About a month ago this same foundation had given wide publicity in
the media and invitations stating that the First Homoeopathic College
will be opened by the Minister of Indigenous Medicine who will also
enrol the first student on the same day.
In this regard, this foundation had sought donations from
unregistered Homoeopaths amounting to Rs. 50,000 and it is understood
that many of these unregistered Homoeopaths who are eagerly waiting to
get themselves registered under the shelter of this so called foundation
as well as intended students who seek admission in this so called
college which do not even exist by a structure, have fallen prey to the
request.
This so called college as per the invitation was to be opened in a
Government land belonging to the Ministry of Health where the present
Government Homoeopathic Hospital is housed.
When some of the professionals in Homoeopathy met the Minister
seeking clarification in this issue, it was noted that the Minister or
the officials were totally unaware about such invitations involving the
Minister and the publicity given.
Hereby it is evident that even the Minister had been taken for a ride
by this foundation headed by the President of the Council. Isn’t this an
act of misconduct in addition to many other malpractices?
As Dr. Tilak states, isn’t this a ground for the Minister to dissolve
the Council? The Council which is a highly responsible body and the
members who should have been much more responsible has turned a blind
eye on this issue and become a laughing stock!
The fact behind this irresponsibility or innocence of the members
circulates around the President and these members have become his
henchmen to gain shelter owing to their own weaknesses such as
practising allopathic medicine, while others being loyal to him for
pride and benefits.
These council politics had been prevailing for many years and we as
Homoeopaths have been undergoing this frustration since the enactment of
the Homoeopathic Act. For any system to develop, the Act should not be a
barrier but should in time to time be amended depending on the
development and demand to improve the standard and quality.
The Homoeopathy Act which was enacted in 1970 has not been amended
even after 30 years.
In this regard I must commend and appreciate the former Minister of
Health P. Dayaratne who was able to realise that the Homoeopathic Act
need to be amended owing to the many loopholes in it and being outmoded
comparing the need of the future development.
Therefore on his initiatives when Homoeopathy was under the Ministry
of Health during the last regime, a request was made to the Indian
Government seeking the assistance of assigning a Consultant and adviser
for Homoeopathy to advice the Ministry on the necessary amendments to
the Homoeopathic Act and also formulate proposals for future
developments for which the Indian Government gracefully assigned a
Consultant sponsored by the Indian Government in 2005 for a period of
one year.
When the subject of Homoeopathy was assigned to the Ministry of
Indigenous Medicine after the change of Government, many of the
homoeopaths who were frustrated though had some hope of seeing a new
avenue for homoeopathy after the arrival of the consultant had again
been deprived of their hopes as the Ministry failed to implement any of
the proposals formulated by the consultant, but yet is silent and does
not want to take up any responsibilities on them instead have put the
responsibilities to the present council which itself is the cause of the
damage to the Homoeopathy system and jeopardise the general public
seeking treatment from the so called quacks in Homoeopathy.
A. F. H. - Colombo 5 |
