Basil commends patriotic investment for motherland

Tuesday, 19 October 2010 23:24 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lankan in Qatar invests on milk production

ECONOMIC Development Minister, Basil Rajapaksa stressed the need to entertain massive scale investment projects to upkeep the principles of “Mahinda Chintana” as an agriculture based nation and added that the new Livestock Production Centre —’Petro Lanka’— at Banduragoda, Mirigama was an incentive in that pathway.

Minister Rajapaksa declared open the Centre initiated with an investment of Rs. 20 million by a Sri Lankan expatriate employee, Lokitha Karawita who has served as a Senior Construction Engineer at the Petroleum Corporation in Doha-Qatar. He commended the massive personal investment towards the country by this patriotic Sri Lankan. Speaking on the occasion, Managing Director of the newly established centre, Lokitha Karawita who named the centre as “Petro Lanka” over his affiliation with the petroleum sector in Qatar stated that Sri Lanka could be made the miracle of Asia if all Sri Lankans worked with patriotism and commitment.

Karawita has invested Rs.20 million for the phase of this milk producing venture to increase the capacity of local production. The milk production of the country at present stands at low ebb and this BOI approved project of ‘Petro Lanka’ will produce an additional 150,000 litres in the milk grid. It is expected to increase the production up to 400,000 litres in the near future under a phased out programme. This new project will generate 20 direct and 40 indirect employment opportunities location on a 17 hectare land.

Sri Lanka incurs an expenditure of Rs. 17 billion annually on importation of milk foods to the country to meet the demand. The expansion of the milk producing sector would generate self-employment opportunities and minimise heavy exchange flowing out of the country. Present on the occasion were Livestock Resources and Rural Resources Minister, Arumugam Thondaman; Chairman, Livestock Development Board, Ranjith Ellegama and Director, Petro Lanka, Mahinda Liyanage.