Colombo (PTI): Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has cautioned people against being lax after the defeat of the LTTE and said efforts must be made to build on the victory through accelerated economic development.

"There is no time to relax. We should build on this victory in taking the country forward. The words 'no' and 'can't' should not exist in our vocabulary," Mr. Rajapaksa said.

"We as a nation have achieved feats which some had earlier tagged as impossible, like defeating the world's foremost terrorist outfit. Thus if all of us get together and work as one, there is nothing we can't achieve," he said addressing the 1,000 newly-appointed graduate teachers at his residence on Monday.

The President said the country's unemployment rate which stood at 8.3 per cent in 2008 had now come down to 5.2 per cent, the state-run Daily News reported.

"Today five harbours are coming up in the country simultaneously while mega-electricity projects too have been initiated. Infrastructure too is being developed fast with rural villages being given priority in achieving equity in development," he said.

Mr. Rajapaksa also emphasized the need for all Sri Lankans to adopt a positive approach to life, even in the face of adversity, saying this would help put the country on the path of progress. He said the positive approach adopted by the government had paid rich dividends.

The country's teaching fraternity should take the lead in creating a disciplined and educated society in rebuilding a new Sri Lanka, where all could enjoy equal rights and opportunities, Mr. Rajapaksa said.

The President asked the teachers to be innovative and think out of the box in meeting the present day demands by bringing out more productive citizens who love their country.

The President also pointed out that the Government had given the public sector its due place "When I assumed duties three years back, there was a move to curtail the number of state sector employees to 600,000 due to external pressure.

But we never allowed this, and as a result the number today has gone beyond 1.2 million," he said.

"We need money to develop this country. But we would never bow down to any conditions detrimental to the working masses, laid down by international organisations to obtain this money," the newspaper quoted the President as saying.

He said that as a result of proper planning, Sri Lanka was able to give new employment opportunities at a time when western countries were cutting down millions of jobs due to the economic downturn.

Referring to the North and Eastern part of the country, the President said while the East was developing fast with an initial allocation of one billion dollars, the North too would follow the suit.

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