New programme to assist those who lost jobs due to El Niño impact
The special Cabinet subcommittee and officials’ committee appointed under the chairmanship of the Minister of Environment Dr Dammika Patabendi to discuss measures to be taken to address the El Niño climate impact, met for the fourth time recently at the Presidential Secretariat.
Special attention was given to the risk of some people losing their jobs due to the impact of El Niño, while measures to provide relief to those who have lost their jobs were also discussed.
Attention was also given to measures to minimise the risks that the El Niño climate conditions could pose to vegetable and fruit cultivation, as well as steps to be taken to prevent a shortage of vegetables in the country.
As people in six districts are currently affected by the El Niño impact, the progress of programmes being implemented to ensure a continuous water supply needed to enable people in those areas to maintain their daily lives as normal was also reviewed.
It was decided to hold a media briefing on September 4 to raise awareness about the commencement of the Maha cultivation season. It was also decided to hold a discussion via Zoom with district secretaries, including the chairpersons of the district coordinating committees, in the six districts affected by El Niño. The subcommittee is scheduled to meet again on September 14.
Minister of Housing, Construction and Water Supply Susil Ranasinghe; Minister of Plantation and Community Infrastructure Samantha Vidyaratne; Secretary/Convener of the special Cabinet subcommittee and Chairman of the officials’ committee/Chief of Presidential Staff Prabath Chandrakeerthi; Secretary to the Ministry of Environment K.R. Uduwawala; Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation D.P. Wickramasinghe; Secretary to the Ministry of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development K.A. Wimalenthiraraja; Secretary to the Ministry of Plantation and Community Infrastructure Gunadasa Samarasinghe; Director General of the Department of Meteorology A.L.K. Wijemanne; and Director General of the Disaster Management Centre, Major General Sampath Kotuwegoda (Retd), together with officials from the relevant departments, attended the meeting.
