Deyata Kirula development work begins

Nimal WIJESINGHE-Anuradhapura Additional District Group correspondent

Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister and 'Deyata Kirula' programme steering committee chairman Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said that Deyata Kirula was a concept of President Mahinda Rajapaksa for creating a forum to have a dialogue with common people and reflecting the pride of the nation.

The minister said so at a public rally held in the premises of Thantirimale Raja Maha Viharaya following the inauguration ceremony of a number of "Deyata Kirula" development projects at Oyamaduwa and Thantirimale.

Siyambalapitiya said that the decision to hold the Deyata Kirula exhibition and the infrastructural development programme in Anuradhapura district was taken by President Mahinda Rajapaksa as a tribute to the heroic people of Rajarata who were like a great wall in preventing the brutal LTTE terrorists proceeding to the interior of the country for nearly three decades.

"We expect around four million people to visit the Anuradhapura Deyata Kirula exhibition starting February 4 for seven days as against two million visited the Monaragala Deyata Kirula exhibition," the Minister said.

Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga said that the then leader of the country stopped military operations at Vadamarachchi when LTTE leader Prabhakaran was almost caught, thus allowing LTTE terrorism to thrive and the war drag on until to President Mahinda Rajapaksa ended it in May 2009.