Over to you Post Master General

The Kalapura housing scheme was the brainchild of the late President Ranasinghe Premadasa and inaugurated in the mid 1980s when he was the Prime Minister. The housing scheme, which was under the purview of the Tower Hall Foundation Theatre, was exclusively for artistes, namely actors, film directors, singers, musicians and others involved in cultural activities.

This scheme is located towards the end of Templer’s Road, Mount Lavinia and close to the Bakery Junction. All the plots in the scheme have now been given out and it is now a very respectable residential area.

To date, the area has been developed to unprecedented heights with several respectable people having chosen to buy, build and reside on the available land in the vicinity.

The roads have been widened and a number of garment factories, other industries, offices and even a Keells Super market has been opened for the benefit of the people living in this densely populated area.

During the regime of the C. V. Gooneratne, it was proposed that an agency sub post office for the Kalapura residents be opened for the benefit of the artistes as there was no place in the vicinity to by a stamp, take a photocopy, send a fax, take a call, send a registered letter etc. The building was put up with basic facilities.

Although it had a limited staff, the service rendered was excellent.

It functioned very well without any blemish and the Kalapura agency post office catered not only to the residents of Kalapura but to numerous residents in the neighbourhood, offices and to thousands of innocent girls from rural areas who worked in the garment factories in the vicinity.

It was definitely a very viable venture as well as a yeomen service to many. At present, to buy even a stamp, leave alone send a fax, make a photocopy or a telephone call, those who benefited by the earlier service now have to go all the way either to the Mount Lavinia junction or towards the Attidiya to fulfil their urgent communication needs.

The staff attached to this non-functioning agency post office was so courteous and as I was a frequent customer, I even knew their names.

Over the past two years or so, the activities and the services have gradually diminished.

The building is in a dilapidated state with overgrown weeds and in a few days I am sure the entire sub-post office building would not even be visible. With the greatest difficulty, I climbed the steps to see the interior and I was however surprised to see some of the inventory such as the post box and telephone cubicle still intact.

However, I was unable to locate the valuable plaque that was installed at the opening ceremony. It may have been covered with overgrown weeds or removed by unscrupulous elements.

It is my fervent hope that the authorities responsible for this inexplicable closure of the Kalapura Agency Post Office will take appropriate steps to revive its activities for the benefit of so many clients who are sure to patronise it and also bring profits to the Tower Hall Foundation Theatre.

Sunil Thenabadu
Mount Lavinia