Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, M.P.

Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK)· National List

Profession: Medical Practitioner

Roster profile ↗

Speeches 87 #58 of 225·#4 in party

Attendance 7/8 days present (of recorded)

Speech history

87 speeches

8 April 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam asked the Minister of Urban Development, Construction and Housing about unresolved issues arising from the ADB-assisted drinking water project for Vavuniya Town implemented in 2010–2011, including land acquisition and commitments under a 2013 tripartite agreement. He sought clarification on delays in providing permits, irrigation and access roads for alternative lands, priority employment for affected farmer families, and arrangements to channel surplus anicut water to renovated Agrarian Development tanks, and asked what measures the Government would take if these issues were acknowledged. Oral Question: Drinking Water Supply Vavuniya (424/2025) InfrastructureAgricultureLand & Housing Read →
21 March 2025 AI summary During the Committee Stage debate on the Finance, Planning and Economic Development Ministry allocations, Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam attributed continuing economic hardship in the North and East to past fiscal mismanagement and the lack of post-war livelihood and development opportunities. He called for unused infrastructure such as the Kankesanthurai Presidential Palace to be repurposed, rehabilitation of small irrigation tanks and release of agricultural lands, establishment of traditional medicine production and other factories, and reopening of the Lanka Siddha Ayurveda Medical College. He also requested more assessment officers for local authorities and increased budgetary support for the Northern and Eastern Provinces to strengthen village economies and post-war recovery. Appropriation Bill 2025 - Committee Stage (Twenty-sixth Day) and Third Reading EmploymentInfrastructurePublic Finance Read →
12 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam urged the release of farmlands and small irrigation tanks in Vavuniya and the Vanni that have become inaccessible due to boundary demarcations by the Forest and Wildlife Departments after resettlement. He requested Budget-funded restoration of long-neglected and breached small tanks, raised concerns about settlement practices under the Mahaweli “L” Zone and Lower Malwathu Oya Project causing demographic changes and tensions, and asked that such practices not continue. He also called for government support to manage whitefly infestations through shared spraying equipment, an increase in the fertilizer subsidy to Rs. 20,000 per acre preferably supplied through Agrarian Service Centres, compensation for flood-damaged black gram cultivation, and free or expanded crop insurance for subsidy recipients. Appropriation Bill 2025 - Committee Stage: Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation Ethnic Reconciliation & DevolutionAgricultureLand & Housing Read →
11 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, speaking on the Adjournment Motion on deeds for alternative lands linked to the Batticaloa Airport expansion, raised related land issues in Vavuniya District. He requested the release of 231.67 acres acquired in 1985 for the Vavuniya Airport and SLAF Headquarters, noting their importance to the A9 corridor and town expansion. He also called for the release of public lands in Eechankulam now occupied by a camp and 14 acres in Kanakarayankulam allegedly occupied beyond the land formally released for an Army camp, including private land and a cremation ground. Adjournment Debate: Batticaloa Airport Land Acquisition and Release InfrastructureLand & Housing Read →
11 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam supported the Budget allocations for the Ministry of Digital Economy and the Ministry of Science and Technology, arguing that digitalization is central to clean administration, efficient service delivery, and reducing waste under the “Clean Sri Lanka” programme. He urged priority action on digitizing local authority revenue and property tax systems, land administration, traffic enforcement and fines, health records, and education-related processes to reduce delays, improve compliance, and increase public-sector efficiency. He said the Government’s first Budget should be assessed in light of current economic constraints and emphasized that resources should be used effectively while gradually extending digital systems across sectors. Appropriation Bill, 2025 – Committee Stage Debate (Heads 186, 196, 227) Public FinanceInfrastructureCorruption & Governance Reform Read →
8 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam noted that the Educational Development Consortium foundation is supporting preschool teacher training by providing scholarships of Rs. 60,000 per teacher, including in the hill country and Puttalam. He observed that the Budget allocation for the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs is lower than allocations for health and education, despite its broad responsibilities, and expressed hope that the Government will increase funding in future. Appropriation Bill, 2025 - Committee Stage: Ministry of Women and Child Affairs Women & ChildrenEducation Read →
8 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, speaking during the Committee Stage debate on the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs on International Women’s Day, argued that women’s empowerment is essential for social and economic development. He called for expanded employment opportunities, childcare services, new labour laws, support for women-led SMEs and self-employment, low-interest credit, training, and action against predatory microfinance and unsafe foreign employment practices. He also urged focused government attention on the North and East, citing the needs of female-headed households, children with special needs, and orphans following the war, including over 90,000 female-headed households. Appropriation Bill, 2025 - Committee Stage: Ministry of Women and Child Affairs EducationEmploymentWomen & Children Read →
7 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathyalinagam urged the Minister to direct the Sri Lanka Transport Board to provide bus transport for schoolchildren and to address safety at railway level crossings, particularly on the Northern line. He requested permanent or improved arrangements for level crossing guards currently paid Rs. 250 per day, or alternative safety measures such as signals where staffing is not possible. He also raised access problems caused by railway works at Omanthai and between Vavuniya and Mankulam, asking that traditional and local paths across the railway be restored or replaced suitably. On housing, he said many houses allocated under earlier schemes in Vavuniya, Mullaitivu and Mannar remain incomplete, leaving beneficiaries in debt, and requested additional funds to complete the projects. Debate: Appropriation Bill 2025 - Committee Stage (Heads 117, 123, 306, 307, 309-311, 332, 336) EmploymentInfrastructureLand & Housing Read →
7 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam requested Budget allocations and ministerial action to improve transport safety and connectivity in Vavuniya District, including traffic signals at key junctions and near Vavuniya Tamil Maha Vidyalaya. He called for bridges and a flyover in flood-affected rural areas, highlighted shortages of operational SLTB buses and staff vacancies, and asked that rural bus services be strengthened for farmers and schoolchildren. He also urged the introduction of an integrated SLTB-private bus timetable in the Northern Province and action to ensure buses on the Vavuniya-Mankulam section of the A9 carry school students. Debate: Appropriation Bill 2025 - Committee Stage (Heads 117, 123, 306, 307, 309-311, 332, 336) EmploymentInfrastructureEducation Read →
6 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam supported the Adjournment Motion on challenges faced by medical specialists and urged the introduction of an intermediate cadre between Medical Officers and consultants. He argued that doctors with postgraduate diplomas, Masters qualifications, or long specialized experience remain classified as ordinary Medical Officers without appropriate career progression or salary recognition, leading to loss of expertise and migration. He proposed a special Service Minute, defined absorption criteria, dedicated salary scales, and expanded postgraduate training opportunities through universities, including the Jaffna Medical Faculty. Adjournment Motion: Challenges Faced by Medical Specialists (Postgraduate Trainees) EmploymentHealthcare Read →
6 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam said Sri Lanka should strengthen universal health coverage through a primary healthcare approach, noting the impact of COVID-19, the economic crisis, population ageing, and the burden of non-communicable diseases. He requested allocations, staffing, equipment, and administrative action for several Northern Province health facilities, including Vavuniya, Mullaitivu, Mannar, Chettikulam, Puthukudiyiruppu, and Iranai Iluppaikulam hospitals, with specific calls for dialysis machines, a CT scanner, pharmacist appointments, and expedited donor-funded projects. He also urged revival of the Lanka Siddha Ayurveda Medical College, appointments for unemployed Ayurveda/Siddha/Unani graduates, establishment of a Siddha pharmaceutical factory in the North, and staffing for drug rehabilitation centres, while welcoming the planned Osusala outlet in Vavuniya. Appropriation Bill 2025 - Committee Stage: Ministry of Health and Mass Media InfrastructureHealthcare Read →
6 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam notes a procedural issue regarding his allotted speaking time, stating that he had been informed he would have 14 minutes. Appropriation Bill 2025 - Committee Stage: Ministry of Health and Mass Media Parliamentary Procedure Read →
5 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam highlighted the severity of drug use in the post-war Northern and Eastern Provinces and called for strict enforcement of national laws, including alcohol age limits, regulation of liquor outlets, control of public drinking, and effective use of police powers against illicit liquor production. He noted that the Northern Provincial Administration has established medical rehabilitation centres in all five districts and urged the Minister of Health to provide staff and make them operational promptly. Adjournment Motion: Jaffna - Social Impact of Drug Addiction Among Youth HealthcareLaw & OrderEthnic Reconciliation & Devolution Read →
4 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam raised administrative concerns in Vavuniya District, particularly the division of Manalaaru/Weli Oya GN divisions between different Pradeshiya Sabhas, which he said was a politically motivated anomaly affecting local services and representation. He requested the creation of an appropriate local authority for the area, filling 26 Grama Niladhari vacancies in Vavuniya North, and allocating funds for a new Vavuniya District Secretariat building. He also highlighted wider staffing shortages, including drivers, technical officers, management assistants, development officers and disaster management officers, and asked that officers assigned to Vavuniya/Mannar divisions be required to serve there rather than in other districts. Appropriation Bill 2025 — Twelfth Allotted Day — Committee Stage Law & OrderInfrastructureCorruption & Governance Reform Read →
3 March 2025 AI summary The Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam addressed the Energy Ministry budget allocation and supported the Government’s renewable energy target of 70 per cent by 2030, while urging stronger implementation in the North and East. He raised concerns over the Mannar wind power project, including alleged lack of transparency, inadequate community benefits, CSR misuse, and flooding linked to blocked drainage during Phase I, and requested ministerial intervention. He proposed expanded solar farms on unused state lands, grid and transformer upgrades to enable rooftop solar, free electricity connections for vulnerable households, concessional tariffs for small producers, and subsidized fuel for war-affected farmers and fishers. He also called for adequate CEB and Ministry staffing in the North and East, citing the absence of a dedicated CEB Engineer in Kilinochchi. Committee Stage Debate: Appropriation Bill 2025 - Head 119 (Ministry of Energy) Public FinanceEnvironmentInfrastructure Read →
1 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam argued that reconciliation, accountability, and reintegration require the adoption of a new Constitution. He noted the Government’s stated intention to introduce one and urged that constitutional reform be prioritized to address the national question and support economic improvement. Committee of Supply: Ministry of Justice and National Integration (Head 110, Heads 228-236, Head 326) Ethnic Reconciliation & DevolutionCorruption & Governance Reform Read →
1 March 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam urged expedited bail or release for long-term detainees held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and questioned delaying its replacement pending new organized crime legislation. He argued that genuine reconciliation is necessary for economic progress and requires careful handling, accountability, adequate funding for the Office on Missing Persons and Office for Reparations, and stronger attention to the Geneva accountability process. He called for a new Constitution to address reconciliation and the national question, proper implementation of language policy, and special attention to the families of the disappeared. Committee of Supply: Ministry of Justice and National Integration (Head 110, Heads 228-236, Head 326) Justice & Human RightsEthnic Reconciliation & DevolutionForeign Affairs Read →
20 February 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam formally raised a question in Parliament. No further substantive details, policy issue, or demand were included in the recorded statement. Oral Question: Hospitals and Health Services in Kalutara District (Q.422/2025) Parliamentary Procedure Read →
19 February 2025 AI summary Dr. Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam argued that the 2025 Budget’s aim of “economic democracy” cannot be achieved in the North and East without resolving political marginalization, land issues and long-standing regional inequities linked to the war and poor governance. He highlighted the Northern Province’s low GDP contribution and called for timely fertilizer subsidies, fair market access, disaster compensation, restoration of tanks, release of lands held by the military and State agencies, and allocation of pasture for livestock. He also criticized delays faced by diaspora investors in obtaining land and approvals, urging a genuine one-stop mechanism to facilitate investment in the region. Debate: Appropriation Bill, 2025 – Second Reading Corruption & Governance ReformAgricultureEthnic Reconciliation & Devolution Read →
5 February 2025 AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam highlighted acute health staffing shortages in the Northern and Eastern Provinces, linking them to post-war service demands, and requested action within the year to ease shortages. He welcomed the Health Ministry’s 2025 hospital management manual for Divisional Hospitals and PMCUs and asked that similar guidance be issued for all hospital levels, while also calling for SPC branches in every district amid drug shortages. He further requested tax concessions for imported Siddha medicines, funds to complete the stalled Vavuniya Accident and Emergency Unit, appointment of trained pharmacists in government facilities, and special attention to deficiencies at Thirukkovil Hospital and Mullaitivu District General Hospital. Adjournment Debate: Monaragala Health Sector Issues Healthcare Read →