The Hon. (Dr.) Janaka Senarathna

¶ 01 [11.29 a.m.]

¶ 02 In those days, roads were “built on paper.” Recently, a former Sabaragamuwa Provincial Minister of Road Development received a 15-year sentence for paying Rs. 77 million for works not done. Many rural roads in Ratnapura look built only on paper.

¶ 03 A 2018 feasibility study (247 pages) on Kahatuduwa–Pelmadulla showed an annual benefit of about Rs. 6,000 million, with six interchanges and about 69,000 vehicles per day. Though the alignment traverses landslide-prone areas, it concluded the project is economically viable.

¶ 04 Government policy aims for safe, comfortable and sustainable transport — rail, expressways, rural roads and public transport. According to the Government Spokesman’s statement in Daily Mirror of 27 August, the Kahatuduwa–Ingiriya section will commence; lands are being acquired. Ingiriya–Ratnapura is not abandoned but requires a new feasibility study and redesign as the prior route lies along river systems. The 2018 plans did not include the Kelani Valley Railway extension; now we plan to take it to Ratnapura, requiring redesign.

¶ 05 Works halted in 2022 due to the country’s bankruptcy caused by policies over decades. The Kelani Valley Railway to Ratnapura (built 1912 to Ratnapura; to Opanayake by 1919) was removed in 1976 by a powerful Minister of that era.

¶ 06 We have not stopped and will not stop the Ruwanpura Expressway. We will also restore the Kelani Valley line. On gems: in 2024, gem exports earned only about USD 168 million, while operating around 8,000 mines costs about USD 200 million annually; thus, billions are lost. We will act on this too.