Gammadda100: Day 48: The two sides of Sri Lanka – expressways and precarious log bridges
Sri Lanka, the country we all know, love and adore has two sides….
Side A: This is the side we show-off to the international communities and organisations. We boast about it and its flyovers, well-maintained and clean cities, wide roads with perfect tarmac, big sidewalks – and then the expressways for our own satisfaction. Then talk about these developments in arguments to prove which government did most work.
Side B: This, sadly, is the part of Sri Lanka nobody talks about. Some are in denial of it while others are too ashamed to talk about it. There are also groups, mainly politicians, who use these parts to gain advantage during elections, and then neglect them while they live in luxury.
“Politicians have come here and laid foundation stones to build bridges. But nothing was built. We have written letters to all the Ministers and all the MPs. But nothing was done. Why are they doing this? They stay in air-conditioned rooms while we live under the trees”, said a villager
This is the Sri Lanka where people are still compelled to use footpaths and log bridges. On a daily basis, Sri Lankans, our own countrymen, walk a fine line between life and death on precarious log bridges…
This is the story of one of these communities….
Itthegala Village – Handagirigoda, Ratnapura
“On some days we come across elephants. Our lives are not secure until we are on solid land again. On rainy days the log gets slippery”, said a villager
The villagers of Iththegala have sustained themselves for over seven decades now with produce grown in their home gardens, which falls prey to wild elephants…
Top view of the Log Bridge
An even larger obstacle for this community is traversing the Katupath Oya. They have just the one road to access their village, their homes. At present, the bridge they use to reach the village is a rudimentary log bridge. Crossing on the log bridge is a gamble between life and death. A gamble which many have lost, being washed away – never to be seen again….
“All we ask for is that a proper bridge be built before we fall in and die one by one”, said a villager.
The time has come, for the village to have a brand new bridge. To have a future, with no risks in trying to access their own home.
The time has come, for the Gammadda 100-Days initiative, to make a difference…..
COMPLETED NUMBER OF PROJECTS: 12
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