Water and power cuts longer than announced

Colombo (News 1st): Residents of many urban areas were burdened with the intermittent water and power cuts. This is a report on how these irregular power and water cuts have taken a toll on the general public.

__________________________________________

People's Voice

"Water cuts have severely inconvenienced everyone. There is no water in the morning, and the children are severely inconvenienced as they have to attend school. We would appreciate if we receive the water on time."

"Water is given only for 5 hours a day. 3 hours in the morning, 2 in the evening."

"They cut water without informing us. We can't store water, and now we don't have water for drinking purposes."

"They cut power in the morning as well as in the evening. We are incurring heavy losses due to this. They cut power for a longer period than informed. We waste a lot of food."

"I run a tailor shop. It is in December and April that we hope to earn some extra money. They cut power for three hours in the morning and another two hours in the evening."

__________________________________________

Water cuts in Colombo and suburbs severely affected the public. While residents of Colombo face such difficulties, people living in Kalutara, Wadduwa, and Benthara are inconvenienced due to high levels of salinity in drinking water. Sand mining in the Kalu Ganga has been identified as the main cause. Residents note that the mouth of the river was approximately 100 feet, but now it's more than 1 kilometre, resulting in salt water flowing upward and mixing with river water. They note if they open a tap connected to this line, they only receive salt water. Meanwhile, its been 18 days since the people have been inconvenienced due to power cuts. The public, as well as small and medium businesses, are severely inconvenienced due to the continuous power shortages. Locals from several areas charge that power is being cut for a longer period than what was informed by the Ceylon Electricity Board. When inquiries were made from the CEB, a senior officer of the board stated that daily power cuts may increase further. The officer stated that they hope to supply uninterrupted power between April 13th and 20th. However, Minister of Power and Energy  Ravi Karunanayake speaking regarding the issue noted that they will end the power cuts from the 10th of this month. He apologized to the public for the inconveniences caused and took the responsibility of ensuring that such an issue will not take place again in the future. He also requested that electricity be conserved.