The Hon. (Dr.) V.S. Radhakrishnan

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, today the Government has brought a salary increase Bill for private-sector employees, increasing the national minimum from Rs. 21,000 to Rs. 27,000, and stating that after January it will be increased to Rs. 30,000. We welcome this without objection.

¶ 02 Hon. Kitnan Selvaraj said plantation workers should get Rs. 1,700 daily. Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Hon. Anura Kumara Dissanayake also said so. When Rs. 1,350 plus Rs. 350 allowance was proposed at the Wages Board, we insisted only Rs. 2,000 daily would be acceptable — and Hon. Kitnan Selvaraj walked out, I recall. The ITAK stance was Rs. 2,000 daily. Why is this not implemented today? Your Government has 159 MPs. Are you afraid of the companies or do they not cooperate, or have they kept you from fulfilling your pledge? You must answer.

¶ 03 Plantation workers are the lowest paid. Today they get Rs. 1,300 daily only if they pluck 20 kg; if they pluck 10–12 kg, they get only half salary. Thus their wage is lower than other private-sector workers. Therefore, I request the President and Government to increase plantation wages. We will bring a motion and ask your support.

¶ 04 On Youth Clubs: Hon. Mano Ganesan spoke in Sinhala; I will in Tamil. You say one Youth Club per GN division. In our area, one GN covers nearly five estates. If you have one Youth Club for five estates, how can youth development occur? You speak of youth and change — change this. Also, making local authority members heads of these youth bodies invites political interference — better to avoid it. Create youth or sports clubs per area to bring about renewal in youths’ lives.

¶ 05 Many issues persist in plantations. Hon. Minister K.V. Samantha Vidyaratne has announced housing schemes with Indian assistance — we welcome this, though past programs were slow. Please implement them swiftly.

¶ 06 Also, estate hospitals were to be taken over by Government — 19 were promised. Please implement this; it will reduce crowding in urban hospitals. For instance, near Dimbula Estate Hospital in Kotagala, over 10,000 people live; nearby the Kotagala Hospital sees 40,000–50,000 patient visits daily. If estate hospitals are taken over, district hospital burdens will reduce. Lastly, the wage increases of plantation workers — whether Rs. 1,700 or, as Hon. Kitnan Selvaraj said, Rs. 2,000 — must be delivered by this NPP Government. I conclude. Thank you.