A vision for the Colombo Port | Sunday Observer

A vision for the Colombo Port

22 April, 2018

Days and time pass unnoticed but certain days remain etched in the minds of people when it comes to remembering great personalities.

April 23 will not be forgotten by those who were near and dear to Lalith Athulathmudali, the erstwhile Minister of Trade and Shipping and above all a noble son of the soil whose life was cut short 25 years ago having succumbed to the bullet of a ruthless gunman.

Much water has flown under the bridge since then but only a few would know the impact of this erudite and daring leader on the economy and the social fabric of this country. Copious tears were shed on the irreplaceable loss of a great statesman but less has been done to emulate the multi-characteristic personality.

It is an honour and a privilege to pen a few thoughts as a tribute to an eminent personality whose legacy still lingers in the minds of many.

Lalith was a legal luminary of his era but was vested with an unfamiliar task which was to take over the Ministry of Trade and later Shipping added on to the portfolio. He had a vision for the Ports in the country realizing the immense potential of this sector to be a vital cog in the economy. It was no mean task to transform the Port of Colombo to an economically viable Port in the South Asian region.

His visionary and astute leadership helped improve the ranking of the Colombo Port from 136th to 24th by the end of his term as Minister, in the mid 1980s.

With the aim of making the Colombo Port the leading Port in the region he commenced its restructuring, with the amalgamation of the Port Cargo Corporation, the Colombo Port Commission and the Port Tally and Protective Services Corporation into one entity, as the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), do away with duplication and overlapping of functions and bring about a unified and autonomous body for port activities in the country.

Thus, a new chapter was turned in the history of the Port of Colombo with the formation of the SLPA, the brainchild of Lalith Athulathmudali in August , 1979.

He did not stop there but went on to introduce transshipment and containerization business to the Port of Colombo and undertake the task of modernizing the two quays, namely the Queen Elizabeth and Wijeya Quays.

Containers made appearance in Colombo first in 1973.

The Jaya Container Terminal (JCT) owned and operated by SLPA was built with assistance from Japan during the tenure of Lalith.

He also set up the Mahapola Technical Training Centre for the Port employees and the Port chaithya which was half built for over two decades was completed by Lalith during his stewardship.

The berth for bulk handling which was planned in the 1960s by the Colombo Port Commission by way of extending the Queen Elizabeth Quay was taken up by the SLPA as the project failed to see the light of day due to financial constrains.

The berth built at a cost of Rs.100 million was inaugurated by President J.R. Jayawardene on the invitation of Lalith Athulathmudali as Minister of Trade and Shipping to mark the first anniversary of the SLPA in 1980.

The Port of Colombo which handled around 41, 622 Twenty Equal Units (TEU) in 1980 being ranked 139th among global container ports towards the end of the decade handled around 628,485 TEUs and ranked 26th.

As a young and dynamic Minister Lalith played a pivotal role under the J.R. Jayawardena administration, called upon to formulate laws, create jobs and infuse new thinking to the new economic system that opened the doors for trade with the rest of the world. Until then it was a closed economy that existed in the country.

With the focus on creating an export economy, export production villages which provided a market for the producer in the village through the exporter to boost the rural economy was introduced by Lalith.

The Sri Lanka Export Credit Insurance scheme was a brainchild of Lalith. He also expanded the Co-operative Wholesale Establishment (CWE) to provide goods at a reasonable price to people. The bonded warehouse concept was introduced by Lalith to maintain adequate stocks of food during the time of conflict in the country.

A close associate and former Chairperson of Salu Sala, Sita Wimalasena reminisced the leadership skills of Laltih who was an exacting person, yet, open to new and diverse views for the betterment of the country.

"He would call for a meeting every month from all departments to submit a progress report to Parliament. He would attend to problems and solve them immediately,” Wimalasena recalled.

She said, Laith encouraged his staff to attend international trade fairs and initiated bilateral trade agreements with China, Rumania, Poland and Egypt.

A hallmark in him according to Wimalasena was that he gave a free hand to discharge duties.

“He allowed us to function on our own and would interfere only when we made a blunder,” Wimalasena said.

The then Coordinating Secretary to Laltih Athulathmudali and currently Trustee and Secretary to the Lalith Athulathmudali Foundation, Shyamila Perera said, religious ceremonies to mark the 25th death anniversary of Lalith Athulathmudali will be held from April 21 to 22 in Anuradhapura.

An all night pirith ceremony will be held on April 21 and alms giving the next day. Garlanding of the statue near Royal College Colombo will take place on April 23. The Lalith Athulathmudali memorial oration will be delivered by Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka on ‘National Security at that time’ on April 26 at the BMICH.

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