Significant improvement in living standards

Irangika Range

Youth Affairs and Skills Development Minister Dullas Alahapperuma said there had been significant improvement in the living standards of the people and the development activities in the country during the last six years.

Considerable progress has been made in improving the level of health and education of the people during this period.

The period has also seen acceleration in infrastructure development and water and electricity facilities provided to the people.

The government’s development path is very clear. The ongoing accelerated development has solved the people’s problems. We continue to promote and sustain a policy environment that is conducive to empower ordinary masses and increase the living standards of low-income groups.

The Minister further said that the Government has taken measures to concrete over 32,000 km of roads in villages during the past six years which had immensely helped to boost the rural economy and uplift entrepreneurial motivation of rural masses.

By 2012, all households in the country will be provided electricity while 88 percent of the country’s houses have already been provided electricity. Six years ago, it was only 72 percent,” the Minster said.

“We have been able to solve the pipe-borne water problem significantly during the last six years,” he said.

Nearly 520,000 families across the country have received pipe-borne water newly during this period.

The government’s main objective is to uplift the living standards of the people.

We have also taken measures to provide fertilizer subsidy to farmers continuously which did not occur during past regimes.

The amount of fertilizer subsidy has been increased upto four million metric tonnes in 2010 while it was only 2.6 million metric tonnes in 2009.

The fertilizer subsidy has led to increased land productivity and had encouraged farmers to expand the land under paddy cultivation in the country.

Although the 50 kg of fertilizer bag is sold at Rs 5,000 in the market, farmers around the country receive it at a concessionary rate of Rs 350,” he said. The Government has also decided to extend the fertilizer subsidy for tea, rubber and coconut, vegetables, fruits and grain farmers as well, he added.