Father seeks assistance to care for new born twins

• He earns a meagre income by plucking coconuts
• Says wife is undernourished and unable to breastfeed the twins

By Kanchana Kumara  

A resident of Udugama Colony in the Kekirawa Division has been in a predicament due to the lack of income to maintain his family, which includes twin children.  

K.B.P.N. Balasuriya, a coconut plucker, said he has to climb at least 12 coconut trees to earn just enough to buy a packet of milk powder for his twins.His wife, Dhananjani Dilrukshi, said their first child, a daughter, is attending school, while their second child, a son, is to be admitted to pre-school soon. She said she gave birth to twins about six months ago at Dambulla Base Hospital.   

The breadwinner of the family, Balasuriya, earns a meagre income as a coconut plucker, but he said it is not sufficient to maintain a family with four children, including the twins.   

He said his wife, Dilrukshi, who is undernourished due to a lack of nutritious food, is unable to breastfeed the twins. Doctors have advised them to feed the infants with a particular brand of costly milk powder.  

Balasuriya said he is now weak and unable to work hard and that coconut plucking was an arduous task for him.  

He pointed out that they are living in a small room that is not spacious enough for a family with four children, and that he is attempting to build another room.  

They have appealed to philanthropists for assistance to maintain the twins and to build a small house.  

Their address is No. 962/1 Udugama Colony, Kitulhitiyawa, and the contact No. 0743491885. The public may credit their donations to Bank of Ceylon, Dambulla Branch A/c No. 88544431 in favour of K.B.P.N.Balasuriya.