Elephant Pass saltern:

Demining process accelerated

Chamikara Weerasinghe

The process of demining at the Elephant Pass saltern has been accelerated following the orders of Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.

Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had instructed the national demining authorities and their partners to expedite demining activities at the site of the Elephant Pass saltern in keeping with a request by Traditional Industries and Small Enterprise Development Minister Douglas Devananda.

The Traditional Industries and Small Enterprise Development Ministry has been asked to reactivate the salt industry in the North without delay, said Ministry Secretary V.Sivagnanasothi.

An expanse of over 50 hectares will be cleared of land mines with extra effort and staff in the coming weeks, he said.

“The site will be developed with requisite facilities to reactivate the industry with table salt production on mass scale from next month,” he said.

The industry can generate over 2,000 jobs, he said.

“The Elephant Pass salt industry, which used to produce 30 percent of the country’s national table salt requirements was badly affected by the war for over 25 years.

“The tanks inside the site are in a dilapidated condition. Once the demining process is complete in and around the compound, the Ministry will start reconstructing the site, he said.

“We have already discussed with the National Water Supply and Drainage Board about constructing a water supply system for the site, he said.

“The National Building Research Institute is helping the Ministry with construction plans, he said.

“The Elephant Pass saltern is capable of annually producing 15,000 to 20,000 metric tonnes of table salt for both household and industrial purposes, he said. The annual table salt consumption in the country is 195,000 metric tonnes of which 40 percent is imported. The Government spends around Rs. 370 million for this. .

“With the saltern in Elephant Pass starting operations, there will be no need to import salt,” he said.