Landslide warning at Moragolla Estate
Seventy two families living in the Unugolla Tea Estate in the Moragolla Division have been evacuated from their line rooms in the wake of a landslide warning.
When it rains they take us to schools and keep us there promising houses will be constructed once the rains cease. The rains come and go but we are still living in the same places without any new houses. They never keep their promises and we are in the same plight
The workers were asked to evacuate from this area in 2010 and 2011 after a warning by the National Building Research Organisation. Safer alternatives had surfaced at that time as well but the matter still remains unresolved.
Several residents expressed their views on this matter. Mr. Wigneswaran said landslides had occurred in 2010, and they were housed temporarily in a school. There was an election at that time and the displaced were well fed and well looked after. Promises were made about providing houses in safe areas. However no one had visited them after the elections.
“When it rains they take us to schools and keep us there promising houses will be constructed once the rains cease. The rains come and go but we are still living in the same places without any new houses. They never keep their promises and we are in the same plight,” Mr. Wigneswaran said.
He said having heard what happened at Koslanda, they were now sick of these promises.
“The truth is, now we are thrown on to the roads. The estates officials gave us lands and after we flattened them using bull dozers, the people in the village filed action stating that lands should not be given to Tamil people. Now they request us to be calm until the case is over. What we fear is that by the time the case is over our lands also will be lost like what happened in Koslanda,” Mr. Wigneswaran said.
Similar sentiments were expressed by many estate workers blaming those who come to them only during elections and were nowhere to be seen afterwards. The workers are asking for a permanent place free of landslides and other natural disasters, a place to live and provide a better future for their children. They claimed that very poor people live in Moragolla and they needed -+*immediate attention and not false promises. Despite orders from the President it is regrettable that no responsible officer had so far visited this area to resolve this matter.