Ravi warns mid-week holiday could impact GDP

Former UNP Deputy Leader MP Ravi Karunanayake has cautioned that declaring a mid-week holiday for the public sector could have a significant negative impact on the country’s GDP.

Speaking to the media, he said that if the objective was to reduce fuel consumption, the government should have instead facilitated work-from-home arrangements.

He pointed out that even during the Covid-19 pandemic, the country did not come to a standstill, as work continued through alternative systems.

Karunanayake stressed that a similar approach could have been adopted in the current situation, adding that declaring Wednesday as a holiday is not the most effective solution.