SLA constructs new road through Thenmaradchi lagoon

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2003, 15:12 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army is now engaged in constructing a new 3 km long road from Kachchai harbor in Thenmaradchi division in the Jaffna district through the nearby lagoon to connect the Chalambamthivu and Aruhuveli areas in the south. A large number of army personnel have been deployed to construct a bridge with Palmyra logs and iron bars to connect the lagoon with the land, civil sources in the peninsula said.

The new road is being constructed to provide easy access to the SLA to go nearer to Pooneryn and other areas close to it, which are now under the control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), civil sources claimed.

The construction work on the 2 km long road from Kachchai harbour to Chalambamthivu has been completed in the first phase. Now the second phase of construction is going on to take the new road to Aruhuveli through the nearby lagoon.

To construct a bridge over the lagoon, a large number of Palmyra logs and discarded rails are needed. Now the army is felling Palmyra tress in Kachchai, Maravanpulo and Thanankilappu villages, located in the High Security Zones in the Thenmaradchi division.

Palmyra trees felled in these areas are first brought to Kachchai harbour through the Chavakachcheri-Thanankilappu road and thereafter being taken to the lagoon site through paddy fields secretly, civil sources said.

Thousands of Palmyra logs and discarded rails are being transported to the site by army tractors daily during nights, fishermen of the area confirmed.

The SLA has banned members of the public from entering the area where the road construction is going on, civil sources said.