The citizens of Sri Lanka understand during the April Tamil
– Sinhala New Year season, that how best the Island
nation remains a well blessed country in the world.
It is unfortunate the politicians from both sides for their
power hungry political gains had mislead the innocent
civilians and made them to develop the animosity with
each other since the country gained its independence from
the British.
There were ruthless communal unrests and those
upheavals had led to a bloodiest civil war for nearly four
decades.
Healthy peace accords which were meant to create peace
between the majority and minorities in the Island were
discarded with making a healthy peaceful coexistence
among the citizens in the Island a distant dream.
April Tamil and Sinhala New Year season particularly in
the Sinhalese areas in the Southern part of the Island
creates a wonderful atmosphere with people of all walks of
life celebrating the festive season with their kith and kin.

Similarly even in the North and East Tamils celebrate the
festive season elaborately with their kith and kin. The
chariot festivals also take place in various temples in the
North and East and the prominent among those chariot
festivals is the festival celebrated for premier Hindu deity
Ganesh appears with the elephant face in Maruthady
Vinayakar temple, which is located opposite the oldest
English hospital called Green Memorial hospital in
Manipay.
So when the war lasted for four decades almost all the
families in the South were mourning during the April
season for their young departed souls who served in the
Armed Forces and perished. On the other hand people in
the North and East also lost their beloved ones and going
through a darker period until the war came to an end in
May 2009.
The dead bodies of the armed forces personnel were
reaching their villages and there were white flags and
banners found everywhere sympathizing with the families
of the Armed Forces personnel died in action in the battle
fields of North and East.
The ruthless and the meaningless war had created
widows and parents without children as well as the
siblings losing their beloved ones.

People from the North and East didn’t have access to their
kith and kin with main high ways such as A-9 high way
remained closed with Railway tracks and Railway assets
which were in the Jaffna – Colombo mainline badly
damaged.
Therefore the end of ruthless war which had dogged
several healthy peace initiatives had opened the avenues
for peace and reconciliation as well as for the people to
travel around the Island fearlessly.
Since the war came to an end, thousands of people from
the South had travelled extensively in the North and East.
The travelling in the North and East for the Sinhalese
families in the South was more a pilgrimage. It was in
honor of their family members died in action in the North
and East and to pay the visit to the areas they served
people in the South traveled to the North and East.
They also travelled on pilgrimage to the foremost Buddhist
shrine in the islet Naina Theevu, which is known in Sinhala
as Nagadeepa.
In the meantime People in the North and East also
travelled extensively in the South following the end of war
they had gone on pilgrimage to Kathirgamam shrine in the
down south.
Apart from that the People from the North and East had
also travelled to the up country areas. Kandy and

Peradeniya were their favorite places as several of their
relatives had their higher education at the Peradeniya
University.
The April which is the Spring in Sri Lanka and the people
in the whole of country particularly in the South travel
extensively in this festive season visiting their kith and kin.
Therefore it is unfortunate this magical period in April
which unites the people during the festival season had
dogged nearly for four decades, and now it is for the past
two decades the festive season brings all people together
in the Island Nation making way for new hopes and a
healthy reconciled atmosphere.

By Ananth Palakidnar – 16.4.2025