February 27, Colombo (LNW): Nearly half of the telephone numbers provided to public service officials are inactive and unreachable, a survey conducted by the Economics and Statistics Department of the University of Peradeniya disclosed.
The survey canvasses an island-wide coverage tracking telephone numbers publicly displayed on the website of the Regional Secretariat office of Grama Niladhari officials, Samurdhi Development Officers and Development Officers who are attached to each Divisional Secretariat of the country.
The survey scrutinised the operational status of the listed numbers, assessing whether they were in use and capable of responding to incoming calls.
Out of a total of 589 telephone numbers surveyed, 286 were determined to be inactive.
Moreover, the report indicates that 22 per cent of the active numbers failed to elicit a response upon dialing, while 29 per cent of the calls were answered.
These findings underscore the significant prevalence of inactive and unresponsive telephone numbers among public service officials, highlighting potential challenges in communication and service delivery.
