The Minister made this observation at two meetings held at Wellawaya and Bibile in the Monaragala District on Monday (26) to brief People’s Representatives and Government Officials at electorate level on 319 rural community services and empowering the people to solve community issues.

He added that the Government has also taken steps to increase the number of Public Sector employees from 600,000 to 1.3 million to strengthen the Government Service.  Nearly 3000 People’s Representatives, Government Officials and Community leaders from the Secretarial Divisions of Wellawaya, Thanamalwila, Katargama, Buttala, Sewanagala, Bibile, Medagama and Madulla attended the meetings held at the Mahinda Rajapaksa Hall Wellawaya and Vijith Vijithamuni Soysa Cultural Hall Bibile.

Earlier 10 meetings were held on May 24-26 to brief People’s Representatives and Government Officials at electorate level on 886 mobile community services scheduled to be held in Badulla and Monaragala in the Uva Province next month.

Nearly 18,000 People’s Representatives, Government Officials and community leaders representing 26 Secretarial Divisions in the Uva Province attended these briefings.  

Arrangements have been made to hold two more meetings in this connection in the Monaragala and Wiyaluwa Electorates on June 7. The majority of 1.2 million people in Uva will benefit from these mobile services.

In the 11 Secretarial Divisions of the Monaragala District there are 132,370 families (448,142 people). Minister Rajapaksa stressed the need to monitor the progress of the programmes and the importance of cooperation among the community, People’s Representatives and Government Officials in recognizing priorities and planning the relevant tasks.  The issues are categorised as common and individual.

Follwing the success of the services conducted in the Kegalle, Kurunegala and Puttalam Districts from July 1 to December last year and their 62 percent success the President had instructed Minister Rajapaksa to extend the programe to all parts of the country.

People’s Representatives including Ministers Jagath Pushpakumara, Vijith Vijithamuni Soysa. Uva Chief Minister Shashindra Rajapaksa, MP Vijitha Berugoda, Monaragala District Secretary A. Padmanathan and Economic Development Ministry Additional Secretaries Priyantha Mayadunne and Shantha Bandara, Senior Government Officials, Provincial Ministers and other Political Leaders attended the briefings held in the Monaragala District.