Thugs storm Kelaniya Uni hostel Three undergrads hospitalised

June 7, 2013, 9:35 pm 

By Hemantha Randunu and Dhammika Salvatura

About two dozen thugs armed with bicycle chains and iron rods broke into a male hostel of the Kelaniya University, at Hunupitiya on Thursday night and assaulted the students.

Two victims were admitted to the Kiribathgoda hospital and another was rushed to the Ragama Teaching hospital.

The attackers had come in vans and on motorcycles, eyewitnesses said.

The police suspect the assault was sequel to an argument between the students of the hostel and a group of Science Faculty students of the same university that evening.

The JVP affiliated Inter University Students Federation said the well planned attack had been carried out to silence students who had the courage to fight for their rights.

Up to yesterday evening, no arrests had been made. Authorities have decided to provide police security to the hostel following the attack.

Dengue: Fight or perish!

Editorial-June 7, 2013, 8:56 pm 

Time was when parents formed vigilance committees to protect schools against two-legged Tigers. They used to take turns to stand guard near school gates to ensure the safety of their children. But, strangely, they do not seem so keen to protect their precious ones against death dealing winged terrorists on the rampage.

Dengue has raised its ugly head again. Mosquito breeding places have been detected in many schools, some of which have been severely warned by the health authorities. Like bombs and bullets, dengue also kills, but parents have lowered their guard.

University students and their teachers fight for various causes, marching as they do long distances. It was only the other day that they joined forces to stage walks in protest against power tariff hikes. They are to be commended for their concern about the burning problems of the hapless public and their voice needs to be heard. But, sadly, they have failed to put their own house in order! Some faculties of the University of Colombo have been closed in view of a dengue outbreak and the Colombo Municipal Council has detected several mosquito breeding places on the campus. The dons and undergrads should be asked what they have been doing while mosquitoes were breeding within the university premises. Is it that they were too busy with external issues to see the puddles infested with mosquito larvae right under their noses?

Dengue has snuffed out the life of a female law student. That fate may not have befallen her if the University of Colombo had taken steps to eradicate mosquito breeding grounds within its premises. University administrators including the Vice Chancellor have a lot to answer for. They cannot shift the onus for fighting dengue to others. If the head of a family is held answerable or even prosecuted for mosquito breeding in and around his house, there is no reason why the head of an institution responsible for the same offence shouldn’t be brought to book. However, in combating dengue, others at the Colombo University should desist from engaging in Sri Lankans’ favourite national pastime—buck-passing. If all undergrads, teachers and non-academic staff of that university put their shoulders to the wheel, it won’t take them more than half an hour to rid the entire campus of mosquito breeding places. Likewise, each and every school could be cleaned equally fast if its students, teachers and past pupils make a concerted effort to prevent dengue without waiting for others to do it for them.

Then, there are political parties and their activists who could be mobilised to wage an all-out war on mosquitoes. The SLFP, the UNP and the JVP have their task forces—the Blue Brigade (Nil Balakaya), the Youth Brigade and the Red Star Brigade respectively. Why these brigades consisting of young, energetic people, are not taken out to fight dengue is the question. There’s nary a village that does not have a place of religious worship and if the help of religious dignitaries is enlisted, an effective countrywide dengue eradication campaign could be launched easily.

We report today that about 90 per cent of state institutions throughout the country have not complied with a government directive to set up dengue eradication units. It is hoped that the government will put its foot down and make them fall in line. The situation has become so bad that the Defence Ministry has had to step in to combat mosquitoes. It looks as if we could do away with all other ministries and make do with only the MoD! However, in preventing dengue, the importance of mobilising the public cannot be overemphasised. The time has come for all Sri Lankans to put up a united front against dengue—or perish.