Promises in Peril
Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s meteoric rise to the presidency in Sri Lanka has been followed by a sobering realisation: the promises made during a campaign in the heat of a national crisis are far easier to make than to keep.
Plans are underway to assist an average needy family of four with a monthly package of Rs. 15,000, a senior adviser to President Ranil Wickremesinghe said yesterday, adding that the move was expected to help ameliorate the plight of nearly 65,000 families.
Food Security Committee Chairman Dr. Suren Batagoda told The Island yesterday that at present some 100,000 families across the country were starving.
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He said financial assistance would be provided to those families for three months. Within three months, the government would design a package in the form of food stamps, etc.
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Dr. Batagoda said the World Food Programme, UNICEF, the World Bank, and state agencies would also team up to strengthen food security, focusing especially on needy pregnant mothers and pre-school children.
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