Parliament takes stock of abandoned major construction projects

The Parliament has recently discussed the difficulties caused by abandoning some major construction projects.

Minister of Urban Development and Housing Prasanna Ranatunga instructed the Ministry Secretary at the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Urban Development and Housing, to consult with relevant parties and take a decision regarding abandoned uncompleted buildings in the Colombo municipal area. Accordingly, the minister also directed the Ministry Secretary to submit those recommendations to the cabinet.

The Minister made the order when the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Urban Development and Housing, chaired by him and State Ministers Arundika Fernando and Thenuka Widanagamage

Here, the State Minister Arundika Fernando pointed out that in Colombo area with high commercial value, abandoned and unfinished buildings such as ‘Krish’ and ‘Hyatt’ are causing a lot of damage. Therefore, it was emphasised in the committee that immediate action should be taken in that regard.

Meanwhile, Minister Ranatunga also instructed his officials to draw up some relief program due to the current economic crisis, in collecting the installments from the people who bought houses of the Housing Development Authority. The minister also advised to take the concessional measures so as not to harm the financial viability of the authority.

He told officials to arrange for the immediate release of the land belonging to the Coast Conservation Department (CCD), which can be used for the advancement of the tourism industry, to the relevant investors within the legal framework. It was discussed that it is necessary to provide land for temporary construction for the tourism industry while keeping the right of the land with the department and Bali Islands in Indonesia is a good example of that. Accordingly, the Minister also instructed to contact the Ministry of Investment Promotion and carry out related activities.

Members of Parliament Chandima Weerakkodi, Upul Mahendra Rajapaksa, Gunathilaka Rajapaksa, Jagath Kumara Sumitrarachchi, Manjula Dissanayake and Jagath Samarawickrama as well as officers of the institutions under the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing also participated in this meeting.