The Hon. Rauff Hakeem, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 Although the Gampola MP is not in the House, he is aware of this issue and has spoken about it earlier. Therefore, I trust the Government will act immediately. This became a major issue during the last election, and I wish to remind the House of it again.

¶ 02 Before speaking about the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, I want to mention another development we are seeing. IndiGo Airlines is commencing a flight service from Tiruchirappalli to Palaly on the 30th of this month. Similarly, there is a passenger boat service between KKS in Sri Lanka and Nagapattinam in India. That service has experienced intermittent suspensions. Recently, Alur Shah Nawaz, a Member of the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board, also visited here. The Indian Government has provided many facilities at Nagapattinam for passengers. However, I must state that at the KKS terminal, there are no facilities for passengers to disembark. I urge the Hon. Minister to upgrade the KKS passenger terminal and provide modern facilities for passengers.

¶ 03 Likewise, the Oluvil Harbour is frequently discussed in this House. During the previous Government, Oluvil Harbour was handed over to the Ceylon Fisheries Corporation, and a portion was given to a private company to pack fish for export. But many fishing boats cannot enter Oluvil because the harbour mouth is blocked due to an incorrect breakwater design prepared by DANIDA, which also funded it. DANIDA accepted fault and agreed to pay USD 12 million in compensation. However, the total corrective cost exceeds USD 20 million, leaving the balance to the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. Therefore, the breakwater correction has been stalled and must be carried out. If improved, it would greatly help.

¶ 04 This would benefit fishermen in the Ampara District. During rough seas, boats along the coast from Kalmunai to Pottuvil cannot be berthed there and are forced to go as far as Valachchenai. Therefore, facilities must be provided to berth boats at Oluvil during rough sea periods, and the harbour should be fully converted into a fishing harbour.

¶ 05 Although it was initially prepared as a commercial harbour, local communities already suffer heavily from coastal erosion and fear reopening could worsen erosion. To dispel this fear, a sound plan should be drawn up so that this major investment is returned to public use. I respectfully request the Hon. Minister to take appropriate action.

¶ 06 I would also like to refer to the Batticaloa International Airport. There are five airports declared as international airports: Mattala, Ratmalana, Katunayake, Palaly and Batticaloa. We could also speak about Trincomalee because China Bay is important and has been a military airfield. The Batticaloa International Airport runway must be properly designed and completed to accommodate commercial aircraft. Upgrading the Batticaloa Airport will give a major boost to business. I draw the Hon. Minister’s attention to this. When Hon. Nimal Siripala de Silva was in charge previously, he initiated some action, but it was not completed.

¶ 07 Sir, I also want to touch on the Kandy Multimodal Transport Terminal. The Hon. Minister mentioned it in his speech. The Hon. Deputy Minister of Transport and Highways is here to explain.

¶ 08 Okay. The Multimodal Transport Terminal will not be useful unless you establish parking facilities for buses entering Kandy at three nodes: Katugastota, Peradeniya and Pallekele, which are the city’s entry points. Many outstation buses entering during peak hours cause severe congestion. The plan envisaged three bus holding areas and a city shuttle. The master plan also considered a tram or single-car train using the rail track through Kandy. Those need to be finalized to comprehensively resolve Kandy’s congestion, which is very serious. I am sure the Hon. Minister will address this when the terminal is completed.

¶ 09 Having said that, let me deal with another matter. In the Minister’s speech on Ports and Civil Aviation, he referred to the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. The news I am about to cite appeared yesterday. The Deputy Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation, Hon. Janitha Ruwan Kodithuwakku, gave an interview to the Daily Mirror; the day before yesterday it ran as the headline: “Govt. to woo top ten shipping liners in world for Colombo port expansion.”

¶ 10 While I understand you are having discussions to implement the President’s Budget promise—to call for EOIs for the Colombo West Container Terminal 2 and the Colombo North Port within one month—experts in the logistics sector point out serious gaps, especially regarding excess capacity. By end-2026, Colombo Port’s available container capacity is expected to be 14.15 million TEUs (as per the table I place in the Library). That is about 45 per cent more than the 7.79 million TEUs handled in 2024. With completions earmarked, you are nearly doubling capacity by 2026. I also doubt the ECT will be completed within two years; given cancellations of some tenders and lead times for equipment, the ECT will be delayed by about 1.5–2 years. The National Port Master Plan (2019, MTBS) states 14.15 million TEUs is sufficient for demand through 2040. If so, why proceed now with Colombo North Port’s three new terminals totaling 4,600 metres of quay, which are not required until 2040?

¶ 11 It may take a decade or more, and if you are planning now for ten years ahead, that is fine. But another serious issue arises: the Adani Ports concession complicates new tenders—the Adani-run terminal arrangement blocks SLPA’s partnership for the East Terminal, causing further delays in identifying a third party to develop the remaining terminals.

¶ 12 Regarding Hambantota, its capacity is to rise from one to two million TEUs by end-2027, further increasing excess capacity and triggering a price war with Colombo terminals, which themselves will be at 45 per cent overcapacity by end-2026. SLPA’s JCT, which contributes about 70 per cent of SLPA income, will be hurt most; it will lose volumes, while SLPA still must service the breakwater loan for ECT. Historically, at SAGT’s inception (under my late Leader Hon. Ashraff as Minister), we discussed how to manage price wars among multiple terminals. The only solution is a proper regulator. A Port Terminal Regulator must be appointed immediately, as multiple terminals—CICT, SAGT, JCT, ECT and later Colombo North Port—will compete. Without regulation, a pricing war will damage national revenue. The appointment of a Regulator is a sine qua non. I hope the Hon. Minister will ensure this price war does not undermine SLPA’s earnings.

¶ 13 On the proposed Veyangoda internal dry port: experts say it is intended as a long-term measure to ease container congestion and boost foreign earnings via value addition (e.g., logistics parks). But current Colombo Port congestion arises mainly from Customs clearance delays and increased inspections, with hundreds of import containers stuck in-port and more queued for entry. A dry port 40 km away and outside the logistics corridor will not ease this. As an interim measure, hire privately-operated container yards close to the Port until the Kerawalapitiya Customs Inspection Yard and the Bloemendhal Logistics Park are operational. Many well-equipped private container freight stations near the Port can be used for container parking—far more effective than a distant dry port for this problem.

¶ 14 On water security for Colombo and Gampaha—two densely populated districts—dedicated reservoirs are essential: Yatimahana and Wee Oya. These projects are urgent; feasibility work must proceed expeditiously. They are vital for water demand in Wayamba and the Western Province. Also, the Weliwita Bulk Water Supply PPP proposed in our time, supported by ADB, did not materialize due to objections from engineers in CEB, NWSDB and elsewhere. If multilateral-endorsed PPPs are sound, they should be implemented to foster public–private cooperation that improves utilities.

¶ 15 Finally, I wish the Hon. Minister well in managing the many institutions under him. He says Allah will help; in this month of Ramadan, we pray Allah guides you to fulfil your tasks efficiently. Thank you.