Opinion – New names erase our history
With the helpful and devoted hard work of two social workers of the area, the Ahungalla Railway Station and its access road was opened during the colonial days on 26.11.1947.
Similarly, the adjoining Maha Kumbura Ela (Drainage channel) and its road was opened on 09.05.1968 by an officer of the Ceylon Civil Service who was then the Minister of Irrigation and Power. None of them wanted to name these two roads by their own names, but the people have continued to use these roads and never failed to remember them. The two roads remain as memorials to them.
It is sad to see some of the present day politicians having a peculiar complex to rename these old roads after them only because they have had the privilege of seeing the use of Government voted funds in a routine process of converting tar, metal, cement and sand with the help of Government labour for a repaired road surface while several people who have donated their valuable lands are silent.
This present day peculiar complex will change one day for the people to say ‘old order change the yielding place to new.’
Thus the Railway Station Road and the Maha Kumbura Ela Road will remain so for ever, without any name added as a prefix imposed.
May the land donors be given the last laugh to laugh best when the new names are not used.
By Y. A. de Silva, Ahungalla
Source: Daily News
Tags: access road, british raj, ceylon, donors, drainage system, irrigation, last laugh, maha, memorials, politicians, prefix, present day, privilege, railway station road, road surface, social workers, two roads
