Sri Lanka’s new prime minister said the beleaguered nation was down until its last day of petrol, as the country’s electricity minister told citizens not to indulge in long fuel queues that have sparked long-running anti-government protests. Huh.
see photosRanil Wickremesinghe, newly appointed Prime Minister of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka’s new prime minister said on Monday that the beleaguered nation was down until its last day of petrol, as the country’s power minister told citizens not to join the long fuel queues sparked by anti-government protests. Is.
On Thursday, Prime Minister-appointed Ranil Wickremesinghe said in an address to the nation that the country urgently needed $75 million in foreign currency to pay for essential imports.
“At present, we have petrol stock for only one day. The next few months will be the toughest months of our lives,” he said.
“We must prepare ourselves to make some sacrifices and face the challenges of this period.”
He said two shipments of petrol and two of diesel using Indian credit lines may provide relief in the next few days, but the country is also facing a shortage of 14 essential medicines.
The crisis sparked widespread protests against President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his family, culminating in the resignation of his older brother Mahinda as prime minister after fighting between government supporters and protesters last week that killed nine and 300 were injured.
desperate quote
The president replaced him with an opposition MP Wickremesinghe, who has held the position five times earlier, in a desperate bid to pacify the protesters.
But protesters have said they will continue their campaign as long as Gotabaya Rajapaksa remains president. He called Wickremesinghe a puppet and criticized his appointment of four cabinet ministers, all members of the political party run by the Rajapaksa brothers.
Wickremesinghe on Monday said he played a role for the betterment of the country.
In Colombo, the commercial capital, long queues of auto rickshaws, the city’s most popular mode of transport, queued at gas stations in vain wait for fuel.
“I have been in the queue for more than six hours,” said Mohammad Ali, a driver. “We stand in line for about six to seven hours to get petrol.”
Another driver, Mohammad Naushad, said the gas station he was waiting at had run out of fuel.
“We are here from 7-8 am and it is still not clear whether they will have fuel or not,” he said. “When it will come, no one knows. Is there any point in waiting for us, we don’t know either.”
The COVID-19 pandemic, rising oil prices and a populist tax cut by Rajapaksa, the strategic Indian Ocean island nation, where China and India are battling for influence, are in the midst of a crisis unparalleled since their independence in 1948. Is.
A chronic foreign exchange shortage has led to massive inflation and shortages of medicine, fuel and other essentials, with thousands taking to the streets to protest.
A diesel shipment using an Indian credit line arrived in the country on Sunday, but it is yet to be delivered across the island.
“The public is requested not to stand in queues or top up till the deliveries of 1,190 fuel stations are completed in the next three days,” Power Minister Kanchana Wijekesera said on Monday.
Wickremesinghe is yet to announce key ministers, including the crucial post of finance minister, who will hold talks with the International Monetary Fund for the much needed financial help for the country.
Former finance minister Ali Sabri had preliminary talks with the multilateral lender, but he resigned last week along with Mahinda Rajapaksa.
0 notes
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
for the latest auto news And AnalysisFollow carandbike.com Twitter, Facebookand subscribe to us youtube Channel.