Ceylon Chamber raises funds to help earthquakeaffected Nepalis

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) is seeking the support of the local business community and the public to help the Nepali people affected by the massive earthquake, which has taken the lives of well over 3,000 people.

The organisations or individuals willing to support this worthy cause can do so by making their contributions to the ‘CCC National Disaster Relief Fund’, which has been set up at Sampath Bank.The bank account number of the fund goes as 0009 6000 1257.

The chamber, which is a member of the Asia Pacific Alliance for Disaster Management (APADM), a regional grouping engaged in disaster relief, recovery and reconstruction initiatives in the Asia Pacific region, will channel the funding support to the affected Nepali people via the APADM, which has already dispatched a rescue team to Nepal and also has set up a hospital to assist the affected people.Whilst the chamber appreciates any immediate contribution from any party, it requests the donors to credit the account not later than May 5, 2015, as an immediate transfer of funds is required for humanitarian assistance to be provided to the affected.

Nepal being a least developed neighbour with limited resources, the people affected by the earthquake need our humanitarian assistance at this crucial moment. Sri Lanka has received large-scale humanitarian assistance during the tsunami disaster in 2004 as well as during the recent droughts, floods and the landslide at Meeriyabedda.

The massive earthquake that hit t he Kathmandu Valley has taken the lives of well over 3,000 people, injured over 6,500 people and it is estimated that an equal number of people are still missing. The neighbouring countries India, Pakistan and Bangladesh as well as Sri Lanka too have dispatched rescue and medical teams and relief items to provide immediate relief.