Refreshing Green and innocent smiles

Kilinochchi town looks like smiling with us after an overnight rain. From roads to trees, everything looks fresh and green. And it made me super hungry. Solution: Ammachi’s Food!

Edwin introduced me this restaurant Ammachi’s Food the other day but I haven’t had a chance to taste the food yet. It is operating under Agro-Economic Development Project and promotes nutritive traditional northern Sri Lankan food. The restaurant has fancied with a green theme. Even the ladies who work there as cooked were wearing green aprons and head covers. The restaurant looked neat, clean and tidy with an action station setup. It’s simple. First you take a look at the each action station, then determine what you want to eat and finally pay to the particular action station you buy food. Maybe you’ll have to go to more than one action stations to mix and match your plate but it’s no trouble. Finally there’s a juice corner with freshly squeezed juice. The food is nutritious, mouthwatering and cheap!

After two wades, two Dosai and a fresh wood apple juice, I was stuffed and energized and ready to ride even around the peninsula throughout the day if I have to! And we head to Manthai to see Krishnamoorthi and see the Vavunic tank.

Road to Mankulam wasn’t much but riding in a drizzle wasn’t that bad. Ambalpuram is located off the highway towards the western coast, near the Vavunik tank. Just like the Manikkapuram and probably many other villages like that, Mankulam was created after the outburst against Tamils in 77. Many displaced Tamils around the country came here and a village was born out of the pain, fear and frustration.

The little community center located in an isolated patch of land but when I step inside, I could see a busy English class with ten-twelve kids. There weren’t the usual clamour you’d expect from a bunch of kids here, but the silence except the teacher’s voice and eagerness to learn new words. That sight was encouraging. Even after they saw me and my camera, they spent few seconds to look at me curiously and gift me a smile or two but that was about it. After that they went back to the English lesson. 

“The Praja Mandala has been initiated here several years ago but it was just a name on papers. But after the training programs and support programs, we have learned a lot from things like how to run a communal society, administration and communication to simplest things like how to maintain records, how to write a formal letter or how to talk and negotiate officially with government bodies.”

I could see how effective the training programs were by the comment of many social workers and villagers I have talked so far in South and North. I realized that those training and knowledge gave them the tools to form community governing bodies which can be work hand to hand with local government authorities effectively. And I had a hunch that this development will pave the way to a new dawn of Sri Lankan politics in future, fingers crossed.

“The ministry of home affairs wanted to select the best operational Praja Mandalas and as per that request our Praja Mandala also got selected. We didn’t have the community center back then. The ministry promised us to reimburse the cost to build a community center if the Praja Mandala can manage to spend 200,000. We signed agreements and started building the community center. We spent north of 600,000 LKR but still we didn’t receive a single rupee as per the promise. Kandayya Sivanesan, a counselor of North Provincial Council helped us with the rood. Now we are facing a difficult situation now as we bought materials from shops with the promise to pay them later after we get the provisioned grant. But I believe the Pradeshiya Sabha will come through and grant us that money as that money will pass from the ministry someday. Pradeshiya Sabha is giving us a great support I must add.”

Krishnamoorthi explained the hardship and cumbrances they went through to build the community center. But all the hard work that laid the foundation here is worth the trouble. I could say that without a doubt after I saw those kids and their English lesson.

We thanked krishnamoorthi and headed to see the famous Vavunik tank. According to Krishnamoorthi, more than 80 families out of the 286 total in the village fish in Vavunik tank for the livelihood. The rest of the village depends on agriculture.

Just before we turn to the rough off road towards the tank, Thamilchelvan pointed me a land with many uprooted tombstones. It used to be a cemetery of LTTE soldiers. And apparently the government didn’t like the colorful commemorations organized here so they made sure that there won’t be any commemorations or a cemetery here.

Apparently I can’t expect to see refreshing green and innocent smiles everywhere…