Army will help rebuilding - Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa, MP

Walter Jayawardhana

Like our Army saved the Tamil people from terrorism they will also rebuild their settlements with irrigation tanks , irrigation ducts and roads to a better standard than they ever existed before said Uthuru Vasanthaya Project Chairman and Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa, MP at a ceremony handing over 101 heavy construction equipment to the Army to rebuild the Northern Province infrastructure easing the rapid development and resettlement of IDP's in welfare centres.

The equipment imported from the People's Republic of China under the sponsorship of the Ambassador for the People's Republic of China Yang Xiuping also marked the 60th anniversary of China. The Galle Face Green where the ceremony was held was decked with the yellow star spangled red flags of China.

Ambassador Yang Xiuping symbolically handed over an ignition key of a unit to Senior Presidential Advisor, Basil Rajapaksa, MP who then handed it over to the Commander of the Army Jagath Jayasuriya.

The 101 units worth Rs. 2,353 million was hailed by the Government as the largest stock of machinery imported by the Government in Sri Lanka's history. The equipment will be used by the Army Engineering Corps to build the Northern Province infrastructure rapidly to quicken the resettlement process of the IDPs and immediately engage them productively in the country's overall development.

China's Ambassador Yang Xiuping said that this clearly displays to the world the strong friendly ties between the two countries. She said she is upbeat of being able to supply this machinery at a time when her country was celebrating its 60th National Day. She said such efforts on her country's behalf to Sri Lanka's effort to rebuild will continue in the future.