Kite surfing schools facing closure
In whichever part of the country you may be, the effects of Easter Sunday bombing are still felt. The village of Kalpitiya one among those badly affected by that deadly blast.
Though the kite surfing season at Kalpitiya has begun, the fallout of the deadly blast have taken a heavy toll. The beaches are all but empty, and the kite surfing schools are on the verge of bankruptcy. The kite surfing season typically starts in May and ends in October.
Normally the Kalpitiya coastline would be filled with foreign kite- surfing enthusiasts. Sadly hardly any foreigners are to be seen now.
Earlier, there used to be five kite surfing schools dotting the Kalpitiya coastline. One of these has already closed down for want of tourists and its foreign owners have left the country.
The owner of one local kite surfing school said 95% of foreign reservations had been cancelled, while foreign instructors had indicated they would not come.
At another school, the owner had instructed his staff to come to work only two weeks per month, though he continued to pay their monthly salary. “However, I don’t know how long I can continue to do it,” he said.
All these schools have bank loans to repay. Owners of the schools pointed out they had asked for relief by way of cancellation or deferment of installment payment until the situation returned to normalcy, but lamented that they had yet to receive a positive response.
The around a 1,000 individuals depending on these schools for their livelihood are now facing destitution.