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Supreme Court determines five sections of COVID-19 (Temporary Provisions) Bill unconstitutional

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Announcing the Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Temporary Provisions) Bill, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena yesterday said that the court held that the Bill could be passed with a simple majority if several sections thereof were amended as specified by the court.

Speaker Abeywardena said that a three-judge Supreme Court bench had observed that the draft bill contained five provisions which were not consistent with the Constitution. Sections 12, 4,5,6, and 7 of the draft bill were inconsistent with the Constitution. 

The draft Bill containing those sections could be passed with a special majority in addition to people’s approval at a referendum. However, if those provisions in question are amended to remove the inconsistencies, then the Bill could be passed in Parliament with a simple majority, the Supreme Court had held.



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Purchasing of 2025 green gram harvest

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The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation to provide the required provisions to purchase the green gram harvest in a competitive manner with the private sector by expanding the program initiated by the National Food Promotion Board, on the advice of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation,

Green gram has been cultivated in an area of about 16,500 hectares in the 2025 Yala Season and intermediate season and a harvest of about 14,600 metric tons of green gram is expected.  Currently, green gram harvesting has started in the Hambantota district, and it has been reported that middlemen are buying the harvest for a low price of Rs. 450/- per kilogram.

 

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Cabinet approves the completion 74 bridges under the Rural Bridge Program

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Approval has been granted at the cabinet meeting held on 08-02-2021 to award 326 bridge construction contracts to the State Development and Construction Corporation for the construction of bridges across the island under the Rural Bridges Program.

The construction of a further 23 bridges has been assigned to the Road Development Authority.

It had been decided in the year 2022, to stop the construction of 184 bridges, where construction had not been initiated. The construction of 45 bridges from the 142 remaining bridges have already been completed.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Transport, Highways, and Urban
Development to recommence the construction of the remaining 74 bridges by the State Development and Construction Corporation and  to complete the construction expeditiously.

 

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Parliamentary Pension Act No. 1 of 1971 to be repelled

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Policy approval of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted at their meeting held on 16.06.2025 to repeal the Parliamentary Pension Act No. 1 of 1971 of the State Council.

In keeping with the promise given to all  Sri Lankans who supported the vision of ‘A wealthy country – A beautiful life’ which appeared in the policy declaration of the Government, a draft bill has been prepared by the Legal Draftsmen for
repealing the Parliamentary Pension Act with the objective of cancelling pensions rights given to elected members of the Parliament and their spouses.

As the Attorney General  has given clearance to the draft bill, the  approval of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted to the proposal submitted by the Minister of Justic and National Integration to publish the said draft bill in the government gazette notification and subsequently to be presented to the Parliament for its concurrence.

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