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There should be a total ban on exporting elephants for any reason, as
gifts or for exchange of animals with other zoos.
Recently there was a comment from the Minister of Environment that
there is a shortage of domestic elephants even for religious functions.
However, it is a torture for the poor elephant to travel such a long
journey to Armenia.
RANJITH CHANDRASEKARA
Reference letter to the editor from an ex-member published in the
Daily News of 22.09.07. This is a perennial problem which has plagued
the ACWBC and other institutions in the vicinity for decades,
particularly during the rainy season, due to the low-lying nature of the
premises and the higher elevation of the Municipal sewer lines on
Bauddhaloka Mw.
A leading hospital in Horton Place has pasted copies of a newspaper
article captioned ‘The Stink behind the Plush’ on its toilet doors with
a comment ‘Not Our Fault’, showing that they are also not immune to the
stink and potential health hazards.
The situation has been aggravated with the population explosion in
Colombo and the filling of land and unauthorised constructions in the
neighbourhood obstructing the flow of rainwater to the adjacent canal.
When the sewers get clogged, CMC has always cleared the blockage using
their jet suction equipment.
We are deeply conscious of the potential health hazard which applies
to all the affected areas in the city. The fact that we have earned a
reputation for excellence without any publicity by providing tasty,
unadulterated, nutritious food of high quality at affordable prices for
over 15 years without a single complaint of even a bowel infection, in
spite of the above constraint, is proof of our standards and our concern
for residents and the customers.
In the past attempts have been made by several regimes to solve the
problem with quick-fix solutions which have not yielded the expected
results.
Based on a comprehensive survey plan and contour map of the premises
prepared for the first time under the technical guidance of Engnr. Saro
Weerasuriya, the CMC has advised that their earlier proposal to repair
existing manholes and sewer lines which are connected to a single outlet
to Bauddhaloka Mw is inadequate to cope with the outflow from all the
buildings in our premises. A revised estimate has been submitted and the
work will be entrusted to CMC.
The bakery project was funded by SLCDF in 1993 as an IGP with the
dual objective of providing training/employment to young girls from
low-income families and our disabled girls and generating funds to
support our charitable homes for elders and disabled girls.
Over 1,000 young girls have been trained under this project from
remote villages, war-affected areas and tsunami affected families with
funding from NORAD, Kaonrad Adenauer Foundation and Soroptomist
Association. It is the first time that a Buddhist organisation with
meagre resources has run a bakery successfully and serves as a model to
other organisations.
Ms. M. Hewahettige is not known to be a customer has acknowledged
that the food is tasty (which is proof that it is not contaminated) and
affordable but expressed fears for our elders.
Our elders have been with us for a long time and apparently they
prefer to purchase ‘tasty and affordable’ and unadulterated food from
our bakery rather than from neighbouring eating places in Borella,
Narahenpita and Thimbirigasyaya, which could pose an even greater health
hazard.
We wish to contact Ms. Hewahettige, so that we can get her advice on
safer food sources.
As a charitable organisation we are dependent on donations which
fluctuate annually and a small grant from HelpAge, UK with the rising
Cost of Living and expenditure on staff salaries, there is an inevitable
short-fall in income over expenditure which is balanced annually by the
interest from fixed deposits.
The fixed deposits ensure the stability of our organisation and the
sustainability of our welfare services, as in similar charitable
organisations, and if we encash them to pay for current repairs, we will
have to eventually wind up our services.
It is the responsibility of the Ex-Co elected annually to manage the
finances prudently and allocate funds for the various activities on the
recommendations of the Chairpersons of sub-committees, the Finance
Committee, the President, Secretary and Treasurer after careful
evaluation to ensure that the objectives of the Association are met as
laid down by our illustrious Founders. Our buildings are over 50 years
old and need constant repairs and maintenance.
The revised estimate for the sewerage system with the additional
outlets will exceed Rs. 3m. We are grateful to Dr. Jayantha Silva,
Provincial Councillor for Borella who has promised to allocate some
funds from the PC Budget.
We hope other donors will also come to our assistance.
As a result of the rapid ageing of our population there is a heavy
demand for safe and secure accommodation for our elders. Located on two
acres of valuable State land we have a responsibility to cater to this
demand. Architect Ashley de Vos has given freely of his expertise to
design a new building at the rear of the premises at a higher elevation
to overcome the flooding problems.
To cope with the drainage problem an additional cess pit is provided
to support the municipal sewer line when it is overloaded. We hope to
appeal to local and foreign donors to fund the building, once the plans
are approved by the CMC. The Public Trustee is prepared to open a fund
for this purpose, as some donors have already approached him.
President and Secretary ACWBC On behalf of Executive Committee
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