The State Ministry of Social Empowerment stated that there is no need to make any changes to the existing Samurdhi banking system and the number of employees under the Aswesuma Social Welfare Programme.

When the Aswesuma Programme, which is to provide monthly allowances varying from Rs. 2,500 to Rs. 15,000 to four categories of families, is implemented, the payment of Samurdhi allowances will not be continued.

The Daily Morning queried the State Minister of Social Empowerment Anupa Pasqual as to whether the implementation of the Aswesuma Programme would see any changes to the existing Samurdhi bank system, and the number of related employees including Samurdhi Development Officers, to which he said that there would be no such change. "There is no need to make any changes to them."

The Aswesuma welfare benefit payments were scheduled to commence from 1 July. When the Programme is implemented, a monthly allowance of Rs. 2,500 will be provided to the transitional category of families, Rs. 5,000 to the vulnerable category, Rs. 7,500 to the poor category, and Rs. 15,000 to the extremely poor category. The usual provision of allowances for the disabled, the elderly, and kidney patients will continue, while the payment of Samurdhi allowances will not.

However, as the work related to appeals and objections pertaining to the Programme are still ongoing, Pasqual, on Tuesday (4), told The Daily Morning that the payments to Samurdhi beneficiaries would continue instead of payments under the Aswesuma Programme until the appeals and objections are addressed.