N-E demining in progress

Chaminda PERERA

The government yesterday said that over 1,170 square kilometres of land in the North and the East have been cleared of mines and nine organizations including the Army are in the process of clearing the remaining 443 square kilometres.

According to Director General of National Demining Centre Monty Ranatunga, over 270 square kilometres of land in the Mannar district and 167 square kilometres of the Vavuniya district have been cleared of land mines.

He said that Sri Lanka will become a mine risk-free country before 2020. "Sri Lanka is the first country which succeeded in removing more than half of mine fields in a short period.

Countries emerging from conflicts have announced that they would spend more than a century to clear mine fields. Vietnam announced that they needed 600 years to ensure that the country is free from mines," he said.

Ranatunga added that the demining process is carried out in compliance with the international standards.

He said over 28 square kilometres in Jaffna and 568 square kilometres in Killinochchi districts have been cleared. The Army is playing a key role in the demining process.

Dogs are used for demining in addition to manual and mechanical demining process in the North.

Ranatunga said the railway track between Medawachchiya to Thalai Mannar and Omanthai to KKS has been cleared of mines and the work on these tracks will commenced soon.