The Hon. (Dr.) Prasanna Gunasena - Deputy Minister of Transport and Highways
Deputy Minister Prasanna Gunasena responded to concerns about the Polonnaruwa depot, stating that the shortage is of conductors rather than drivers, with a deficit of 25 conductors. He said around 20 conductors from surplus depots, mainly in the Eastern Region, have been identified for transfer, subject to relocation and accommodation arrangements, with deployment expected after responses within two weeks. He also noted that Kaju Watta is currently served by one trip and that a requested dedicated school bus for Villeyaaya school may be provided once conductor and bus availability improves.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, Hon. Kins Nelson raised the shortage of conductors at the Polonnaruwa depot. The deficit is indeed among conductors; drivers are sufficient for current daily schedules. There is a shortage of 25 conductors. We have identified depots—mainly in the Eastern Region—where there is a surplus and have already emailed to assign about 20 conductors to Polonnaruwa. Because relocation and accommodation must be arranged, I expect within two weeks we will receive responses and deploy them.
¶ 02 Regarding Kaju Watta, currently one trip covers the area. The Villeyaaya school has repeatedly requested a dedicated school bus, but due to the conductor shortage we have been unable to provide it. With increased bus and conductor availability, we hope to meet that request as well.
¶ 03 Thank you.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 5 June 2025 ·No. 1750828922068945 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Prasanna Gunasena - Deputy Minister of Transport and Highways. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 5 June 2025. No. 1750828922068945. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/21348