Delimitation Comm. Sets Sights on National Planning

COLOMBO (News 1st); The newly appointed Chairman of the National Delimitation Commission, Saman Sri Ratnayake, says the Commission intends to provide leadership not only for election-related delimitation activities but also for demarcation work relevant to all service-providing institutions in the country.

He made these remarks while officially assuming duties as Chairman of the Commission.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake recently appointed new members to the National Delimitation Commission.

The Commission is chaired by former Commissioner General of Elections Saman Sri Ratnayake, while its other members are Dr. K. Thavalingam and former Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture Rohana Pushpakumara.

Speaking after assuming office, Ratnayake highlighted the importance of delimitation in a democratic society and emphasized that it extends beyond the electoral sphere.

"This is entirely a technical subject. In a democratic country where elections are conducted, delimitation is an extremely important matter. The reason is that when representative democracy is in operation, it is important to determine the boundaries within which representatives are elected. As a new Commission, we expect not to limit ourselves only to elections. As the National Delimitation Commission, we hope to provide the necessary leadership and intervention for delimitation activities relevant to other service-providing institutions in the country as well. That is one of the key objectives of our Commission. Accordingly, we hope that all institutions concerned will extend the cooperation required for this work," Ratnayake said.