The Hon. T. B. Sarath - Deputy Minister of Housing

¶ 01 Madam Deputy Chairperson of Committees, on behalf of the Minister of Urban Development, Construction and Housing, I answer the question.

¶ 02 1. Yes.

¶ 03 As per the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, the Urban Development Authority (UDA) acquired certain lands including Plot No. 33 (extent 25.8 perches) and Plot No. 35 (extent 10.88 perches) in Kallapaluyaya, Battaramulla, bearing M.P. No. 66598, and they belong to the UDA.

¶ 04 Pursuant to a request made by the Venerable Itthekande Saddhātissa Thera — these lands were given specifically in that period — for the construction of a learning center for novice monks, the land parcel bearing Plot No. 33 (25.8 perches) of M.P. No. 66598 was leased to the Sri Sankhapala Buddhist Social Service Foundation under a 30-year lease. In accordance with the valuation determined by the Chief Government Valuer, an annual lease rent of Rs. 87,500, being 0.5% of the market value of the land, was charged under Lease Agreement No. 853 dated 2014.01.10.

¶ 05 Subsequently, adjacent to the above parcel, a request was made to allocate Plot No. 35 (10.88 perches) of M.P. No. 66598 for the construction of a proposed International Buddhist Meditation Center. Accordingly, under a 30-year lease, with provision to revise the annual lease rent every five years, the UDA proceeded to lease the said parcel to the Sri Sankhapala Buddhist Social Service Foundation at an annual lease rent of Rs. 870,000 as determined by the Chief Government Valuer. In relation to the alienation of the said land parcel, a total sum of Rs. 1,025,512.50 inclusive of ground rent and applicable government taxes was recovered by the Authority on 2023.05.02. Thereafter, upon removal of unauthorized constructions within the subject land, on 2024.08.09, the physical possession of Plot No. 35 was handed over to the Sri Sankhapala Buddhist Social Service Foundation by the UDA. In order to enable the lawful use of the subject land for development activities, the Authority is in the process of preparing a Letter of Understanding for the said land.

¶ 06 In view of the above, as the Authority is in the process of executing the Letter of Understanding to lease the 10.88-perch parcel to the Sri Sankhapala Buddhist Social Service Foundation, there is no legal provision for the Foundation to sublease the said land.

¶ 07 Upon execution of the Letter of Understanding pertaining to the subject land, the annual lease rent of Rs. 870,000 as determined by the Chief Government Valuer must be paid to the Authority, and the land must be used for the intended development activities. If the land is not used for such development, the Authority will proceed to cancel the Letter of Understanding.