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Chapter 105: Changes In Sri Lanka
Nearly a month has passed since Vijayanagara conquered Sri Lanka and incorporated it into its empire, leading to the implementation of various policies on the island, mirroring those on the mainland.
With the removal of foreign interference, the intelligence capabilities of Vijayanagara in Sri Lanka greatly improved. As a result, criminal groups and bandits deeply entrenched in Lanka were swiftly purged out of existence.
Moreover, all lands, manors, buildings of past royal families, Dutch merchants, and churches forcefully constructed after the destruction of Buddhist and Hindu temples were taken under the control of the local Vijayanagar government.
Various policies were initiated for the construction of schools, courts, and police stations, and the recruitment of a new army.
With the assistance of the Secret Service in Lanka, rebel groups that had previously fought against the invaders were identified, newly trained, and appointed as police officers in Sri Lanka. Each police officer was equipped with a baton and shield, and they were taught basic formation and martial arts skills for efficient police functioning.
With the cleansing of all the dark and messy forces in Sri Lanka and the establishment of the police force, the social security of Sri Lanka greatly improved.
Next came the policies regarding schools and courts. The vacancy left by the Dutch resulted in numerous high-quality empty buildings, which were repurposed as schools and courts. Where proper facilities were lacking, new constructions were initiated.
Sri Lanka became more vibrant as children donned their government-provided school uniforms and walked to school with joyous faces, eagerly anticipating their playtime with friends.
The road construction boom finally began, opening hundreds of thousands of jobs. Unfortunately, Vijay did not have the money to pay them, considering the upcoming war with the Mughal Empire. Facing this financial challenge, Vijay thought of an idea and recalled the work-for-relief system of the Soviet Union.
A new policy was promulgated: in exchange for their work, the labourers would be paid with food and land. This policy did not exclude the black people who were the new residents of Sri Lanka. With the confiscation of various Dutch properties, the Sri Lankan government had a large amount of land available. When this policy was announced, it shocked the common Sri Lankan people, who rushed to sign up for the jobs, crowding the various recruiting points.
The black people who lived in their own small community received the news in disbelief, as they were also included in this endeavour. They still had some doubts about the Vijayanagara Empire because all the people they had met, except for their own, had looked down on them and scorned them, treating them as objects to be bought and sold. So, when treated differently all of a sudden, it looked too good to be true for them. They were promised that when they got better, they would be allowed to leave Sri Lanka and return to their homeland, but none of them tried because they knew that they would have to travel through the sea again, and if anything meant life-threatening danger for the black people, it was the sea. When they arrived on this island in the boats, half of their people died due to poor conditions or sickness.
Hence they decided to stay on this land and do what the brown masters wanted. But now that they were allowed to own their own land, it felt unreal. They previously did not have a concept of ownership; in their tribes, everything belonged to nature, and they just lived in this world temporarily. But soon, their worldview changed living under the white men, and they understood what the true world meant. They saw the white man's civilization, and their worldview had opened. So, they knew that ownership of land meant they were a part of this Empire no less than the brown people. They felt more indebted to the king of this Empire, with the intent of showing their gratitude and with the intent of earning a piece of land. Everyone among the black people who could move enrolled for the road construction work.
As nutritious and abundant food was provided on a regular basis to these black folks, they became stronger and more muscular. The efficiency of road construction improved with the joining of these black people. The scene could be seen in various cities of the Lanka Island—a batch of strong black men pulling the stones and gravel needed for the road construction single-handedly, usually, the work that could be done by four people was done by two black people.
This significant increase in the efficiency of road paving happened in just a few months of the construction's start. among them, A pair of twin brothers, strong as oxen and tall as bulls, were the first to claim 5 acres of farmland with a small house on it.
Since they didn't know to farm, their neighbours introduced them to a few contract workers. With their assistance, they managed to harvest their first crop. Witnessing that the promise of Vijayanagara was true, all the workers on the construction project got excited and worked even harder, especially the black people who worked 10 hours a day without anyone ordering them around.
If Vijay had seen this, he would have been shocked because the propaganda portrayed the future black people as lazy and violent individuals disloyal to their families. However, considering the circumstances, it's only natural. Previously, there was no motivation for black people to work hard, as, regardless of their efforts, they would be paid the same, receive the same food, and face the same mistreatment. They weren't allowed to have anything of their own.
Now that they had a chance to own their own land and house, they unleashed all their productivity and worked 10 hours straight. If anyone tried to stop them from even taking a rest, they would become so angry that they might beat up the person who intervened.
Under this atmosphere, the road construction, scheduled to end in a year, was completed in just 10 months, two months ahead of schedule. But all of this is in the future. Currently, as the construction just started, preparations in Vijayanagara for the impending battle against the Mughal Empire were intensifying.