Coconut Board

 The picture is from faculty.ucc.edu

I have just had to compose a long piece to my Sri Lankan VSO boss. I don’t think I am going to make the Oxfam deadline which is fine, but if not, I need to set some boundaries on T and P my two 30+ sidekicks who are beginning to give me a hard time. Obviously I don’t tell them what to do, but I am here to suggest ways of doing things they may not have considered, not to do what they tell me while they do nothing. I was having an easy time of it up till now though for a developing context so I can’t moan.

Today I had interviews with the Coconut Board which was interesting.  There is not enough water in the district 6 months of the year (palms need 50 litres a day) and the soil is sandy rather than fertile so they do not give a maximum yield.  Coconuts should produce 12-13 nuts a month.  Batti palms produce 3.  The target is 10.

In the afternoon I went to the 5 star hotel that is opening up this month just round the corner from where I live on the lagoon.  It is owned by a Batticaloa man.  They are going to build a floating restaurant on the lagoon because he gets his authority from the Tourist Board NOT the District Secretariat.  They will be mortified.

 

The swimming pool is not good for swimming unfortunately or I would have started to use it.

 

Coconut Cultivation

Prior to the cyclone in 1978 when all the adult palms were killed there were 40,000 acres in the district. There were 8,139 acres of coconut palms in 2006 and approximately 3,000 have been cultivated since. The district is not ideal for coconuts because the sandy soil lacks fertility and for up to 6 months of the year there is insufficient water for the palm trees which need 50 litres a day and they can suffer from water stress. The average yield per palm is 3 nuts per month. The target is 10 and they should be producing 10-13.

The district consumes about 60 million nuts annually for oil and milk and the area produces between 41-49 million so there is a shortfall to meet need.

The Coconut Board has a target to increase the acreage by 3,000 a year by new planting, re-planting or rehabilitation. There are currently 9 subsidy schemes in operation starting 2013 totalling 19.27 million Rs. However they are dependent on farmer’s lands for planting and these farmers do not have sufficient funds to pay the costs of preparing the land –clearing, irrigation, fencing and digging holes. The Board do not have access to a mechanical Backhaw to help them. One man can only dig 3 holes a day so to plant a large area is unfeasible. A backhaw costs 2.5-3,000Rs per hour to hire.

 

A new 5* hotel, Hotel East Lagoon, with 45 rooms is being built on the lagoon at Batticaloa and will be completed June 2013. The sole proprietor is Mr Silva Raja, a Batticaloa resident. The food offer includes indian, western and chinese with a special emphasis on fresh fish from the lagoon. The hotel has a wedding theatre, conference hall, gym and swimming pool and permission for a floating restaurant on the lagoon. Prices start at 6,000Rs per night which is very competitive alongside Passikudah. There are 60 staff, most of whom have been employed locally.

Batticaloa District Development Plan DRAFT 2013