Tuesday 24th May 2022

I was in school this morning, and the puppies were still there, as you will see from today's first photograph, but I don't know if I will see them again, as the students were only in for one hour, before being sent home again because of the bus situation, and I heard this evening that all schools will be closed now for the rest of the week, as pretty much all transport in Sri Lanka is now grinding to a halt.

With no petrol, diesel or gas left, the roads will soon be empty, and many people are now relying on firewood to cook. Inflation is out of control - the official figure was 21.5% in March and went up to 33.8% in April, although people tell me the real figure is much higher. The Energy Minister announced today that petrol prices would go up 20-24% and diesel prices 35-38% with immediate effect.

This means that even if the country can import more petrol and diesel, it will be unaffordable for the poorest people, and it will automatically raise the cost of public transport. This will have a huge knock-on effect for Tea Leaf Vision, as their students simply won't be able to afford the bus fares to come to school, because their families will need that money for food, which is also costing much more.

I am very lucky to be having two very good meals a day here - breakfast and dinner - and I took a few photos this evening to show you what a typical dinner at Ananda's looks like. I'm afraid it's a rather dismal blog today, and the link below, which I received via Tim Westbrook, will do little to cheer you up about the current dire situation that Sr Lanka finds itself in, but at least you will feel better informed.

https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/interim-government-for-reform-not-consolidation/






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