India: News

Coca–Cola Constructs New School for Tsunami Affected area in Sri Lanka

Coca–Cola Beverages Sri Lanka ltd in association with Round Table, an NGO in Sri Lanka, constructed a new school building of Mahamaya Balika Vidyalaya in Hikkaduwa, which was ravaged in 2004 Tsunami.

Southern Province’s Chief Minister and Minister of Education, Hon’ble Shan Wijayalal De Silva inaugurated the school building in a traditional ceremony. The school has 600 students, with classes from grades I to XII including advanced level classes in the arts and commerce streams.

The school was re–commissioned in three years with an investment of LKR 50 millions on a new land acquired by Coca–Cola and Round Table with joint efforts of the school authorities and the government. This is one of Coca-Cola’s largest CSR projects and reinforces the priority of education among all the CSR activities in the Indian Business Unit.

Addressing the gathering of local authorities and school children, Hon’ble Shan Wijayala l De Silva said, “It is heartening to see Coca–Cola taking a lead in taking such initiatives. I’ve never seen any corporate investing a huge amount of money for the welfare of the society. Companies like Coca–Cola are setting a great example by being a forerunner at citizenship initiatives. This is indeed a milestone in the history of Hikkaduwa.”

Country Manager, Basil Gadzios, said, “The project is very close to their hearts, one which reflects the importance of education and youth in Coca–Cola’s corporate social responsibility operations and activities.”

It was an emotional moment for the students and faculty of Mahamaya Balika Vidyalaya as the 2004 Tsunami took the lives of 10 students. “I’m extremely delighted and thankful to Coca–Cola and Round Table for providing help and support for the construction of the new school building,” expressed Ms. DLWS Kamala, Principal of the school.

After a minute of mourning, the students presented a cultural program based on the theme of 2004 Tsunami, depicting a story of devastation during Tsunami followed by a new beginning. “I’m sure that the new building equipped with all the modern facilities will help to promote the development of the students,” added Ms. Kamala.

“Coca–Cola in Sri Lanka is committed to supporting education initiatives which make a difference. Such initiatives not only promote socio–economic development but also help in creation of social wealth within communities – after all businesses can only thrive in sustainable communities,” added Manish Chaturvedi, Coca–Cola’s Country Manager for Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

Duleep Daluwata, President– Round Table, Sandeep Gupta, VP –South West Asia, Deepak Jolly– VP, PA&C, Coca–Cola India were also present amongst the other distinguished guests. Coca–Cola in Sri lanka has taken various initiatives like ‘Brave World’ and ‘Sisu Diriya’ to provide value added education and community development in the country. In addition, Coca–Cola has also committed various water projects, housing projects and Project Reach.