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Rupavahini in North after 15 years

by Rajmi Manatunga

Rupavahini went on air in the North yesterday after a lapse of 15 years.

The National Tamil Channel of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC) will enable Northern residents to watch programmes beamed from Colombo as well as those specifically tailored for the North. The service was inaugurated by Mass Communications Minister Imitiaz Bakeer Markar at the SLRC studios in Colombo.

A parallel ceremony was held in Jaffna under the patronage of Hindu Affairs Minister T. Maheshwaran with the participation of religious leaders, top army officials, government agents and LTTE representatives. Rupavahini was received in Jaffna until 1987, when the Kokavil transmitting station was destroyed. The Northern coverage was restored in 1996 with three relay stations in Madukanda, Elephant Pass and Palaly but it stopped in 1998 after the Elephant Pass attack.

Minister Markar said this was a fulfilment of a request made by the people of Jaffna during his recent visit to the North. "This new channel will connect the people in North and East with the outside world," he said. The SLRC is now linked to the Palaly TV transponder station (UHF Channel 43) through three microwave links at Madukanda, Mannar and Jaffna Sri Lanka Telecom towers.

Minister Maheshwaran joining in from the North said the LTTE has extended their fullest support for the establishment of the National Tamil Channel and hoped it will boost the peace initiatives.

LTTE Political Wing Leader (Jaffna) Nahulan said his organisation was willing to support any media which presented balanced programs while safeguarding the cultural values of Tamils. He hoped that people in the South will be able to form an opinion of the grave situation in the North through the new channel.

Rehabilitation and Resettlement Minister Jayalath Jayawardene, SLRC Chairman Prof Dhammika Ganganath Dissanayake, Vice Chairman Mukthar Marikkar, Secretary to the Mass Communication Ministry Kumar Abeysinghe and CEO of Sri Lanka Telecom S. Annan was also present.

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