The Colombo Municipal Council partnered with the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Sri Lanka to pilot Colombo’s first car-free day, a promising step forward, paving the way for cleaner, healthier towns and cities. The initiative was aimed at reducing the public’s dependence on motor vehicles while promoting a healthier lifestyle, a statement by the organisers noted.
‘CarFreeCMB’ took place on Sunday, July 14 from 6 am to 12 noon. The public was invited to join in by foot, bicycle, skateboard - or by any other means without motors. To enable pedestrians and cyclists to benefit from this healthy exercise a number of roads that were closed were re-routed to allow a safe pedestrian environment. Garbage bins were placed at the venue with a private cleaning company ensuring the streets remained litter free.
The Dutch are well known for embracing cycling as the preferred method of transport in our cities and we are seeing the results in our national figures for health and contentment and in reduced rates for road accidents as well. The Netherlands Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Joanne Doornewaard, was quoted as saying prior to the event, she hoped to see more such events happening on Sundays in the future.
Jaffna residents fear radiation risks from 5G towers
Residents of Jaffna have allegedly protested against the installation of 5G towers in the area due to fears of being exposed to radiation. At present several telecommunication companies are engaged in providing 5G networks, considered the next generation of mobile internet connectivity offering faster speeds and more reliable connections on smart phones and other devices, to Jaffna. The reluctance of the people to welcome this technology reportedly follows a lecture by a team of doctors on the possible 5G related radiation. The team had reportedly told pregnant mothers that there was a risk of a human foetus less than five months being destroyed by 5G related high radiation. If the foetus was older than five months, the exposure to this high radiation could lead to infants with birth defects, they were quoted as saying. They also noted that 5G related radiation could cause other illnesses. The doctors had also reportedly warned that 5G telecommunication could easily attract lightening thus exposing people to this danger as well.
The protesters have demanded that the Jaffna Municipal Council abandon moves to provide 5G technology to the area and remove the towers already set up.
SLMA highlights patients’ health needs at workshop on PPIE
A workshop on ‘Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) in Health and Social Care: Its role and relevance in the research and implementation process’, will get underway tomorrow at the National Hospital ( NHSL) Clinical Medicine Academics and Research Centre (CinMARC ) lecture hall .
The workshop is organised by the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) in collaboration with the Institute for Research and Development (IRD), and is the second to be held by the SLMA in collaboration with the IRD as a pre-congress workshop of the SLMA’s Medical Congress. Informed sources have said that PPIE enables researchers to conduct studies that are relevant and in line with the needs of the patients and communities influenced by research, thereby resulting in higher research quality and successful implementation of findings.