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Acid test for ‘bio bubble’ today

06 Jan 2021

  • Ukrainians at Dalada Maligawa alongside locals

  By Dinitha Rathnayake   The Government’s biological bubble or biosecure bubble concept will face its litmus test today (6) with the Ukrainian tourists set to visit the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of the Tooth Relic) while it is open to local visitors. According to Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Director General Dhammika Wijesinghe, the Ukrainian group will visit the Dalada Maligawa today from 11 a.m. to 1.30 p.m. During this time slot, local devotees too would also be allowed to enter the temple. “Since the relevant officials agreed on this time slot, we have given permission for the tourists to visit the temple during this timeframe. This will not affect the locals who come to visit the place, as it will not close during this time,” she said. Wijesinghe told The Morning that during this time slot, the tourists would be required to use another route to enter the temple. However, after entering the upper storey of the Maligawa, they would be maintaining only a four-metre distance with the local devotees. The Government has maintained, even amidst severe political and public criticism, that the Ukrainian tourists would travel within the country exclusively in a biosecure bubble in order to ensure the health safety of all from the infection of Covid-19. Speaking to The Morning, Organisation for Protecting the Kandy City Convener Thushara Swarnathilaka raised concerns over these decisions and said that the public and staffers could also be endangered by this visit. “We saw this when local safari drivers had to be taken to undergo quarantine due to interactions they had had with Ukrainian tourists despite the procedures in places, pertaining to the travel bubble concept. We are worried that a similar situation may arise here. We cannot allow this to happen, as the tourists who should be under quarantine continue to travel everywhere, without even wearing a mask, while it is the people who interact with them that get punished,” he further said. However, when questioned regarding the concerns raised by Swarnathilaka and his organisation, SLTDA Director General Wijesinghe highlighted the income loss currently faced by the tourism industry due to the Covid-19 situation. “If health guidelines are properly followed, people need not unnecessarily panic,” she said. Meanwhile, the Government announced that it would completely reopen all international airports for foreigners from 21 January, as stated by Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga yesterday (5), and that it is planning to facilitate the arrival of 2,580 tourists from Russia, Ukraine, and other countries in that region to Sri Lanka by 19 January. According to Minister of Tourism Prasanna Ranatunga, the airports are being reopened as part of the Government’s plan to kick-start the tourism industry in a bid to help the economy of the country, which has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. A total of 12 locations have been identified as places which visiting tourists can travel to. They are, namely, the Dalada Maligawa, Sigiriya, Dambulla, Minneriya National Park, Yala National Park, Horton Plains National Park, Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, Udawalawe National Park, Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Royal Botanical Gardens in Peradeniya, whale watching areas, and Salu Sala outlets.


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