The conditions of many roads in Sri Lanka are in poor condition although millions of rupees are allocated each year for their maintenance and development.
Several roads belonging to the Nochchiyagama Pradeshiya Sabha are in an appalling condition making lives of the villagers in and around the area of Jayagama, Dombalagama and Oluwewa in the Nochchiyagama Divisional Secretariatvery difficult. The least the people expect are roads decent enough to walk without falling into pits and holes.
There had been temporary relief when the main roads were repaired for Dayata Kirula Exhibition 2012 hosted at a grand scale by the then government. However, even then bi roads in the land interior have not been repaired. Although concrete had been laid for about 200 meters on the bi roads of Morawaka Kanda and Mudithagama stretches of road of about six to seven kilometers long remain incomplete still.
A youth who resides in Nochchiyagama area learnt about Right to Information Act through a workshop conducted by SLPI funded by a USAID-SDGAP programme.
The youth filed a Right to Information (RTI) application requesting details of the financial allocations made for the construction and maintenance of the roads in Nochchiyagama. He sent his RTI request in December 2018.
As per the reply received within the stipulated time he was informed that the central government had allocated Rs. 64,00000 for the bi roads but the Nochchiyagama Pradeshiya Sabha have not received the said funding. The development activities of the Divisional Secretariat are underway as the funds have not been released.
The youth stated that RTI application helped him get information with regard to the allocation of money and the reasons for the delay of construction work. He said that along with the residents of the area he can keep a tab on the development activities carried out in the area.
The youth further said that they can use RTI in the future for the benefit of the masses and that he intends to educate residents about the importance and the advantage of the RTI Act.
This update was prepared by participants of the Information and Communication Training Workshop conducted by the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI) through a grant funded by the United States Agency for International Development through the Strengthening Democratic Governance and Accountability Project Activity.
“The contents of this post are the sole responsibility of SLPI and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.”
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