Students in the dark, small businesses dying

Small businesses are dying because they can’t decide when to function. It is leading to unhappy customers, said Suhail Shabeer, the owner of the small- scale eatery in Kalubowila named Toastpaan.

“The little customer base we have is diminishing due to this situation. What is the solution for this matter? How is the Government going to support our businesses, by stealing more from us?” he questioned.

Students and teachers who have been moved to online learning platforms due to COVID-19 have also been affected.

“We work from home generating dollars for our economy. At the same time, I’m in the middle of my Masters, exams are coming up and there are assignments to finish. If there’s no power, we can’t do those things because we are boiling in the dark. This is pure mismanagement and it is criminal,” Lilanka Botejue, an archaeology student, said.

“There is an eight-hour power cut in Jaffna and that is also not according to the schedule. We are suffering since we cannot conduct our daily activities, online education etc,” Balamayooran Arul, a student, said.