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Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Tuesday, 28 June 2016 00:28 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen, taking up singer Iraj Weeraratne’s social media challenge issued recently, planted a red sandalwood sapling at Vihara Mahadevi Park on 27 June.
“This is a positive challenge. We need to plant more to safeguard loss of trees” said Minister Bathiudeen, and added: “As I take this Ice Bucket challenge, I next challenge three people to take it up-Minister of Rural Economic Affairs P. Harrison, Leader of JVP Anura Kumara MP and Secretary to my own Ministry TMKB Tennakoon.”
Minister of Industry & Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen (seated) joined by officials of the Co-operative Development Department and his Ministry Secretary TMKB Tennakoon (second from right), waters the first plant sapling (a red sandalwood) at Vihara Mahadevi Park on 27 June, out of 100000 saplings that his Co-operative Development Department would distribute in response to the Ice Bucket type challenge (to plant such a sapling) issued to him by Lankan Singer Iraj Weeraratne via social media.
The Cooperative Rural Department of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce will start planting 100,000 saplings across the island in the run-up to July 02 launch of International Cooperative Day. The International Day of the Cooperative movement is being commemorated by the United Nations since 1975. The International Co-operative Day falls on 02nd of July this year and the proposal made Minister Bathiudeen to declare a Co-operative Week from 25th June 2016 to 01st July and to commemorate the Cooperative Day on 02 July at the Nelum Pokuna Theatre, Colombo with co-operators, was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on 14 June.
