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| Wednesday, 9 July 2003 |
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Letters | |
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Rush hour and gun shots in Yala Park It is everybody's guess where this happens to be: Busloads full of merrily chatting people, lorries equipped with benches and chairs carrying around jolly crowds, tooting of horns, ugly dust clouds, black diesel fumes, noisy engines, roaring silencers and exhaust pipes and moreover vans, jeeps, buses, lorries and other kinds of vehicles queuing up at junctions. At Kollupitiya junction, Colombo? No, far away! It is amidst the Yala National Park in the splendid isolation of the Deep South, probably one of Sri Lanka's most treasured wildlife paradises... Just recently I had this astonishing experience. This time I did not take any photograph of wild elephants and other animals as they were hiding most probably avoiding the huge noisy crowds, partly boozed up, frolicking throughout the park. This time I took some interesting photographs of the unbelievable queues of heavy vehicles - the modern metal elephants - spoiling the entire environment: This is weekend rush hour in Yala Park. No, it was indeed not a pleasant time I spent there. Talking to local people and foreign tourists I was told that they are all very disappointed about what they saw and DID NOT see in the park. Even deer and wild boar are slowly but surely vanishing. But this, it seems, might have another very serious reason: Poaching. The shots are to be heard at nights and sometimes even at lunchtime tourists have complained to various hotel staff. And the tourists swear that what they hear are genuine gunshots. The local people in the area confirm this. The poachers now use the old known tracks and even come now by boat too. Deer, wild boar and the easy to kill wild buffaloes are falling victim to this ruthless money greedy people. Nowadays some hotel visitors are even demanding venison and wild boar for their meals in hotels close to the park. What a reputation for this beautiful park known to tourists throughout the world. This seems to be the horrible and disgusting status quo at Yala. Not too long ago the present director of the Dehiwela Zoo, was the animal loving Competent Authority of the Yala National Park. It was a real pleasure to spend those days in the park, which was then full of wild animals and well kept. Moreover it was a clean and splendid environment beautifully sandwiched between Kataragama, Kirinda and the Indian Ocean. The park was gorgeous and serene. Captured poachers were transformed into effective wildlife guides, who were eagerly but most carefully showing hidden paths where they themselves and wild animals used to frequent. But now poaching is reported to be rampant in the Jamburugala and Katagamuwa areas. Wildlife officials are demoralized after the recent killing of park official Kumarasinghe. Earlier there were five army camps along the Menik Ganga. Now there is no one left. There may be an M.O.U. in operation where the war is concerned, but poaching has to be eradicated soon or there will be nothing left of this once so beautiful park. The poachers dreaded the Army who were very effective when dealing with them. At the moment the Yala Park is a great disappointment to say the least. It even annoys foreigners who have to spend a large amount of money to hire a jeep and to pay entrance fees. And what has this famous wildlife paradise in store for them today at weekends? Roads crowded with traffic jams, over-zealous waving people in packed lorries and crammed buses, stinking air, dark exhaust fume clouds. Helpless wildlife guides escort unruly visitors who some time try to flout the rules and regulations of the park. Drunken people assaulting each other on the beach of Patanangala is not uncommon today. The heavy vehicles like buses and lorries should be banned from entering the park. The number of other vehicles have to be allowed in only if a tracker is accompanying the party, which is not what is happening now. Some trackers have to escort as many as three to four vehicles at a time, which is absurd and sheer madness, to say the least. It is a horrendous crime to destroy the park for the sake of big money earned at the entrance! Will the once so beautiful Yala Park bounce back into its old glory again? Or will there be an urgent need to deploy traffic police soon to ensure a smooth flow of vehicles throughout this wildlife sanctuary like on a fashionable express high way?? Then, of course one fine day all the wild animals will be totally wiped off in the famous Yala National Park. SUSANNE LOOS-JAYAWICKREME, Sound pollution by affluent citizens When houses were built on the private road we live on, none expected persons uncaring for the comfort of the neighbours to move into the neighbourhood. It's a habit among our neighbours to blow the horn of their vehicles signaling the servants to open the gate. This happens even after midnight when residents are fast asleep. Those who have their bedrooms facing the road are woken up in the dead of night. Sadly even the foreigners residing in the neighbourhood are culprits of this disgraceful conduct. The visitors to these houses too follow the same practice. If one takes the trouble to get down from the vehicle and ring the bell the neighbours are not disturbed. Despite being rich, is it the lack of a proper education that makes these people act in this manner? If these residents want to be that comfortable in life they could fix a gate with remote control operation. In the alternative, station security guards with a hand phone. I wonder whether there are any laws, which makes this misuse of sounding vehicle horns an offence? CMC, I have noticed there were several letters on the above subject and most of the readers expressed their dissatisfaction over the service charges and other charges levied on their current accounts by commercial banks. In my own experience I have noticed that my banker too, imposed Rs. 10 as a service charge on my savings account for my standing order placed for Rs. 500 per month to the credit of my son's minor savings account with the same bank. It clearly shows my banker robbed more than the interest they are supposed to pay in the next month on the amount credited to my son's account, in advance. Further my banker started charging a half yearly fee for the use of the ATM and they do not have the courtesy to intimate such action to their loyal customers. My other banker had at least the courtesy to display of the ATM that they levy a fee of Rs. 3 for each ATM transaction may be for providing security for the machine or the ATM users. With the rapid development of the IT all bankers should be able to cut down their cost and provide more value added services rather than penalizing their customers in this way. Investment in IT is long-term and introducing various fees to cover up the cost in short term is not acceptable. Considering the huge amounts spend on advertising on misleading their clients on stale products and may be on re-launching their old product while imposing of such pity charges makes the general public a laughing stock. Whoever suggested such charges to be imposed on their clients, might be running out of ideas to improve their profitability through fund base activities rather than opting for such pity fee base income. That might be due to their huge non performing bad debt portfolio. Isn't it? SUDATH MAHENDRE, There have been several letters published in several newspapers including "Daily News" during the past few months regarding violation of "The Contract of Bank Secrecy" between the bank and customer. Why has the Central Bank been silent on this issue? There has been a spate of bank robberies in the recent past, the latest ones being HSBC Pelawatte and Seylan Malabe. There have been instances of demands for ransom while children have been kidnapped. Crime rate is increasing. There is no difference between a local Bank and an international Bank from where the culprits obtain information of bank deposits. Therefore, in the light of what is happening in this "Island Paradise" it is the duty of responsible citizens to keep the ignorant well educated and informed when and where to deposit their hard-earned Savings. Otherwise these gullible Sri Lankans will "GO AFTER" Prizes awarded on lucky draws. Hence this letter in the interests of the general public. An international bank is celebrating 150 years of Royal Charter while its loyal retired pensioners are anguishing without proper health care. It is also hiring contractual labour instead of recruiting permanent staff. Furthermore this 150 year bank sent out circulars to depositors advising hiring of casual staff, and indicated that bank balances would be divulged to them. Hence, depositors should be careful in investing moneys in this type of financial institution. Pramuka has failed and Central Bank has todate not come to the rescue of the depositors. Another Finance Company in Battaramulla has put up shutters. Do not believe in 'long established history' in this competitive world. There are some locally incorporated Banks with AAA Credit Rating. "Do not believe" that foreign banks are safer. It may be so, but not all of them! B.C., As a person who is using BIA at least 2 times a month, and as a person who is travelling around the world through many airports, this is a very unjustified decision to raise the airport tax. This can be explained with one simple question. Why not upgrade the facilities first and increase the price, or tell me what sort of facility they offer to justify even the current tax? Is it; * Sweating (most of the time) bus ride to / from terminal. At least a concession for SAARC passengers should be considered. I do agree that sufficient funds are needed to provide better service, but normally they have to provide the service for what they charge for. Good example is a high way or a toll road. In this case they have to charge money for a road which is not even build. KUMARA ALWIS, |
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