News
Excise Commissioner General admits massive revenue leak due to ruses adopted by toddy manufacturers
By Chaminda Silva
Excise Commissioner General Ariyadasa Bodaragama yesterday admitted that there was a significant loss of excise revenue due to various tactics used by toddy manufacturers.
Commissioner General Bodaragama made the admission addressing the media conference at the Excise Headquarters in Rajagiriya.
“I am not certain that the amount is around Rs. 80 billion, but I am sure there is a loss of tax revenue,” the Commissioner General said, responding to questions from journalists who pointed out that Matara District SJB MP Buddhika Pathirana had repeatedly raised in Parliament that there was an annual loss of Rs. 80 billion to government coffers.
Bodaragama said that there was no attempt to issue a new liquor manufacturing licence contrary to rumours. “I assure you no new liquor licences will be issued without permission from the President.”
Deputy Excise Commissioner Kapila Kumarasinghe said that the highest amount of liquor in the country is being sold in 85 milliliter bottles commonly known as quarters. “We had a meeting at the Ministry of Environment with Environment Minister Mahinda Amaraweera presiding. There we came to know that around 60 percent of quarters were recycled. We are planning to launch a project together with the Central Environmental Authority, and local government bodies to prevent the ‘quarters’ being disposed of haphazardly. As a first step towards this, we are introducing a compulsory deposit system so that the purchaser of the liquor would be made to pay a deposit for each quarter bottle he buys and that would be redeemed only when he returns the bottle.”
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution forwarded by the Minister Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation to appoint R. A. Chandana Saman Ranaweera Arachchi a special grade officer of Sri Lanka Administrative Service (SLAS) as the Commissioner
General of Lands.
Approval was granted at the cabinet meeting held on 05-08-2024 to resettle the unauthorized residents in the railway reserve from the Maligawatte Loco junction to Padukka railway station under the Colombo Suburban Railway Project.
Accordingly, resettlements in 694 housing units which were purchased from housing complexes owned by the Urban Development Authority have already been completed and further, 144 housing units are due
to be received from the Urban development Authority. In addition, a housing complex consisting of 120 housing units is being constructed on land in Kottawa, Malapalla area which is owned by the Railway Department for the resettlement of unauthorized residents in Maharagama, Homagama, Padukka area where there are no housing
schemes of the Urban Development Authority, and the constructions of that housing scheme is being completed at present.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Transport, Highways, Port, and Civil Aviation to transfer the land located in Kottawa, Marapalla, belonging to the Sri Lanka Railway Department, and the housing complex within the said land to the National Housing Development Authority as a free grant in terms of the provisions of Section 6(1) of the Government Land Ordinance and to implement the said program of providing the relevant deeds to the selected beneficiaries in such a way as not to burden them financially.
The Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to the resolution furnished by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation to appoint Dr. Mrs. E. R. S. P. Edirimanne serving as a special grade officer in Sri Lanka Agriculture Service in the post of Additional Secretary (Agri Technology) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation as the Commissioner General of Agriculture,
R A Chandana Saman Ranaweera Arachchi appointed as Commissioner General of Lands
Resettlement of unauthorized residents in Kelaniveli Railway Reserves
Dr. Mrs. E. R. S. P. Edirimanne appointed Commissioner General of Agriculture
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