Give due recognition to inventors

Colombo Dockyard PLC (CDC) built and sold its largest anchor handling tug supply vessel recently. It was just another news item published/aired over the media.

Why is this more important? Why should we pay attention towards this kind of news? May be many have already forgotten what we should talk about and a related topic in detail.

According to the same news item we, Sri Lanka secured six ship building orders worth over US $ 10 million after proving our talent. This should not have been just a news item. It should have received a good coverage.

As we have proved that it can produce high quality International level products that can successfully compete with the products come from any developed country in the world.

This is what we always wanted and this is what we tried to achieve since independence in 1948. In few weeks we will be celebrating our 60th Independence and we should pay attention to the development of our country.

Colonialists always say ‘Sri Lanka cannot’ and ‘Local products are worthless’. Is it because they breath foreign air or eat foreign food and drink imported bottled water?. Is it because they wear imported cloths and speak broken Sinhala (Singlish). They not live here but ‘stay’.

Therefore, they see what is made in Sri Lanka as local (Low-cal) and see no importance in local inventions. Even if the country stops importing few items they will die or leave the country.

According to various feature articles in newspapers and different programmes aired by radio and electronic media, there are very talented Sri Lankans all over the country. Some are just kids and there are youths and elders as well.

There are students from schools, universities and technical colleges who have shown talent. Some of them are employed in small private companies. They have shown these talents by manufacturing very useful machinery and equipment with no guidance, assistance or sponsorship.

Many of them have registered their patent rights and sold them to foreign manufacturers as they have not got any assistance to continue with their inventions.

As a result foreign businessmen now keep an eye on young Sri Lankan inventors not because they love us or want to assist us, but to snatch away the valuable ideas to earn good money by producing them in their land.

They have produced various products needed for day to day life and for special requirements. Special equipment was also produced to make life easy for disabled persons.

Apart from such items various other products such as chemicals to be used as insecticides and pesticides were also made. On several occasions young and adult inventors have presented their talents and also their expectations in detail in the print and electronic media.

These talented and creative Sri Lankan inventors who have already shown their talents by producing innovative skills face numerous problems. The main problem is that they do not receive due recognition for their discoveries and innovative products. There is hardly any media publicity. No authority comes forward to extend a helping hand to them. Whenever a youth manufactures something new and useful he or she is pushed backward.

Relevant authorities badly affected by bureaucracy do everything possible to prevent them from being recognised and being successful. They do not receive any assistance or professional guidance to improve their talents because experienced and qualified persons who hold posts see them as threats and not as treasures. It is true that these Sri Lankan inventors receive little recognition.

Sometimes they receive an award or two. But it stops there and nothing happens thereafter.

We will not be able to become a developed nation like Japan until we give due publicity, respect and recognition who deserves it. If we let down our own country and nation it will never go forward ever. If you do not feel anything whenever you see our National flag and hear our National anthem nothing will work for Sri Lanka. Politics and all else come after that. First of all you should feel ‘Sri Lankan’.

Without that nothing will work out for us. If you let down your own country, do not expect outsiders to respect and stand by it.