The Hon. (Dr.) Susil Ranasinghe - Deputy Minister of Land and Irrigation
Deputy Minister Susil Ranasinghe, answering for the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation, stated that a Cabinet-approved expert committee has been appointed to review the “Urumaya” freehold deeds programme and that Cabinet will decide its future based on the committee’s recommendations. He reported that 22,362 freehold deeds have been issued by the Land Commissioner General’s Department, while the Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority has prepared 26,968 deeds, of which 8,011 have been distributed and 18,958 remain with local offices for distribution. He also explained that applicants who surrendered old deeds may request their return through the relevant Divisional Secretariat under Circular No. 2023/01-11 dated 21 November 2024, with the same procedure applying under the Mahaweli Authority’s second phase.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Mr. Deputy Speaker, I answer on behalf of the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation.
¶ 02 (a) (i) A committee of experts has been appointed with Cabinet approval to review the programme. Upon consideration of the Committee’s recommendations, the Cabinet will decide on the future course of action. (ii) The number of freehold deeds issued so far by the Department of the Land Commissioner General is 22,362. (iii) Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority: Under the “Urumaya” freehold deeds programme, 26,968 deeds have been prepared, of which 8,011 have been distributed to beneficiaries at the zonal level. A further 18,958 deeds are with the Residential Enterprise Management Offices and Division Management Offices for distribution. Department of the Land Commissioner General: Owners have handed over their deeds to the respective Divisional Secretariats to obtain freehold deeds under this programme. (iv) Department of the Land Commissioner General: Those who applied for freehold deeds and surrendered their old deeds to the Divisional Secretariat may, at their discretion, request the return of those deeds from the Divisional Secretariat by completing Annexure 05 to Circular No. 2023/01-11 dated 2024.11.21 issued by the Land Commissioner General. (Annexure 01 tabled.) Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority: With regard to the second phase of issuing “Urumaya” freehold deeds, the return of deeds handed over by beneficiaries to the Division Offices will be carried out as per the provisions of Circular No. 2023/01-11 dated 2024.11.21 of the Land Commissioner General.
¶ 03 Annexure 01 is tabled.
¶ 04 (b) Not applicable.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Tuesday, 8 April 2025 ·No. 1747715041076408 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Susil Ranasinghe - Deputy Minister of Land and Irrigation. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 8 April 2025. No. 1747715041076408. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/15089