27,000 acres of land released fought 30 years given within seconds

Nearly 27,000 acres of private land released

Almost 50 battalions moved out from North

February 22, 2015, 10:36 pm 

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The army has released 26,865 out of 34,561 acres of land held by five security forces commands in the Northern and Eastern Provinces since the conclusion of the war in May 2009 up to Dec. 2013.

Land has been released in stages with the people living in area covered by Security Forces headquarters, Jaffna being the main beneficiary.

The releasing of land commenced in late Oct, 2010 in the Jaffna peninsula.

According to Defence Ministry records, of 33,156 acres held by the Jaffna command, 26,729 acres had been released as at Dec. 2013.

A senior security official told The Island that security forces commands in Vanni (69 acres), Kilinochchi (632 acres), Mullaitivu (572 acres) and East (132 acres) had held a total of 1,405 acres of land at the end of war, whereas the Jaffna command alone occupied a staggering 33,156 acres.

Asked whether private land in areas outside the Jaffna command, too, had been released, the official said that as at Dec. 2013, 12 acres of land in Vanni, 71 acres in Kilinochchi, 15 acres in Mullaitivu and 38 acres in East had been released on a staggered basis.

Army headquarters said troops had given up more land last year in accordance with a plan to gradually release civilian properties.

A senior official said that the army had been told of the government decision to release 1,000 acres of land currently held by the Jaffna command. As at Dec, 2013, the Jaffna command held 6,427 acres of land.

The military said that Palaly-Kankesanthurai sector had been gradually expanded over the years to meet the threat posed by the LTTE. In the absence of overland main supply route, five Divisions deployed in the Jaffna peninsula at the height of the war, in addition to the navy, air force and police, relied on sea and air supply lines. All civilian supplies, too, had to be moved by sea, sources said, adding that Jaffna district deployment remained the largest single commitment until the end of the conflict.

It said with troops gradually giving up private land, there had been significant changes in the deployment pattern of battalions assigned to Jaffna, Vanni, Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu commands. At the conclusion of the war in May 2009, there had been 152 battalions assigned for those commands, the military said, adding that deployment was meant to face a possible low intensity hit and run terror campaign. However, as the situation steadily improved, army headquarters reduced the northern deployment by 48 battalions, with more than half the battalions assigned for Mullaitivu command redeployed.

The LTTE, too, held substantial land particularly in the Vanni east during the conflict, though no one requested the LTTE to give up such land, the military said.