Nittewa

We have a report from Ninthavur in the Amparai District about anothe case like the one that we reported from Galabodawatta in the Galle District.

The Government officials in Ninthavur plan to buy a coconut plantation for about 1700,000 Rupees (that's 17 lakhs) an acre. This is rather overpriced for land in that area but according to a source the land being sold is owned by several persons who are very close to a local politician. And the owners have gotten their friend to approve the valuation which puts this plot of land at more than it's market price.

So they are going to sell this land to the Government for resettling the Tsunami displaced people and then make a profit in the process.

But why did I say this was a story like the Galabodawatta tragedy? Because this is prime coconut land, and the Government will clear the whole plantation, uprooting over 1000 coconut trees. Again, just as in Galabodawatta, the people who worked on this plantation (mostly informal labour) will receive no compensation. The owners of the plantation don't really care because they're sitting in Colombo and making a profit on the deal.

posted by Morquendi @  11:03 PM   || 5 opinion/s ||