The Hon. K.V. Samantha Viddyarathna - Minister of Plantation and Community Infrastructure
Nagastenna Estate in Yatiyantota, owned by the Janatha Estate Development Board, covers 482.84 hectares and has faced poor management due to financial constraints, lack of inputs, and absence of replanting, though fertilizer and agrochemicals are now being supplied. The estate has 1,646 residents, including 99 unauthorized occupants; legal action has been taken against five external encroachers, while action against unauthorized resident workers has been deferred due to social concerns. Measures to improve productivity include providing inputs and management guidance, and processing 138.26 hectares of underutilized cultivable land for lease or allocation to suitable private investors.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 (a) (i) The Nagastenna Estate, Yatiyantota, belongs to the Janatha Estate Development Board. Extent: 482.84 hectares.
¶ 02 (ii) Management has not been at an optimal level due to financial constraints leading to non-application of inputs (fertilizer and agrochemicals) and lack of replanting. Currently, fertilizer and agrochemicals are being supplied as required.
¶ 03 (iii) There are 1,646 residents on the estate, of whom 99 are unauthorized occupants.
¶ 04 (iv) Legal action has been instituted to evict five external unauthorized encroachers. Eviction of unauthorized resident workers poses social issues; therefore, action has not yet been taken against them.
¶ 05 (v) Inputs and management guidance have been provided to improve productivity. A further 138.26 hectares of underutilized land suitable for cultivation is being processed for lease/allocation to suitable private investors under the programme to productively utilize underutilized lands.
¶ 06 (b) Not applicable.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Wednesday, 18 February 2026 ·No. 23308 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. K.V. Samantha Viddyarathna - Minister of Plantation and Community Infrastructure. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 18 February 2026. No. 23308. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/20231