No food, medicine shortage in Jaffna

INDIA: There is no food or medicine shortage in Jaffna as published in some sections of the Tamil Nadu media, the Sri Lanka Deputy High Commissioner in Chennai said yesterday.

The current situation concerning food and medicine in Jaffna remains satisfactory. According to statistics, there are 188,266 families consisting of 653,735 individuals. Their total food requirement is Mt. 11,000 per month. The requirement from September 2006 to August 2007, 12 months is Mt. 132,000 (12 X 11,000), the High Commissioner said.

The Government dispatched Mt. 109,000 of food by hiring vessels while Mt. 40,082 of food items were dispatched by private parties to meet this requirement. In addition, Mt. 206 of food items were sent by air which totally amounts to Mt. 149,288 of food and essential items, it said.

The Sri Lanka Deputy High Commission in Chennai together with the Ministry of Social Services, Commissioner General, Essential Services and Co-operative Wholesale Establishment arranged two shipments of food items, consisting mainly of grocery items, by ship from Chennai direct to Jaffna.

The first consignment was dispatched on January 4, 2007 with Mt. 2,675 of goods while the second consignment of Mt. 2,950 was shipped on May 2, 2007. Though initially the distribution of food items was largely carried out by the numerous branches of the Multi-purpose Co-operative Societies, private traders too started operating by mid January 2007 which has enhanced the situation even further.

Largely an agrarian society, the people of Jaffna have been busy cultivating fruits and vegetables, mainly red onions, vegetables, palmyra products and tobacco and after meeting their domestic requirements, they have been successfully in shipping the surplus of Mt. 7,564.8 to Trincomalee and Colombo.

While ensuring that, the people of Jaffna have sufficient food, the Government has also been regularly dispatching medicine to Jaffna.

The Health Ministry has been granted every shipment facility to dispatch their quarterly requirements of medical supplies to the Teaching Hospital in Jaffna. In addition, emergency supplies are also delivered by air on a regular basis.

The Government has not allowed any shortages in medicine or medical supplies to occur at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital. In addition, the requirements of the Base Hospitals are co-ordinated by the Additional Provincial Director of Health Services, Jaffna and all private pharmacies are facilitated through State Pharmaceutical Corporation by arranging transport facilities in the vessels that leave for Jaffna on a regular basis.

Adequate supply of fuel including kerosene is also available and a steady supply has been established to meet the Jaffna population's needs.

In this context, it is evident that there is no shortage of food, medicine and other essential items in the Jaffna Peninsula and the Government is committed to ensuring that the situation pertaining to maintain sufficient quantities of food, medicines and other essential items remain satisfactory in Jaffna Peninsula.