The Hon. Imran Maharoof
Hon. Imran Maharoof raised concerns about a University College project begun in 2018 with Rs. 50 million, noting a reported Cabinet decision of 10 December 2025 to allocate the site to the tourism sector. He asked why the location could not instead be used for educational institutions such as NAITA and VTA, which currently operate in rented premises, while any tourism activities could use other available land. He urged the Government to consider restarting vocational and educational activities at the site to support students who are unable to enter university.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Minister, regarding the University College referred to in this question, it was an activity started in 2018 with an allocation of Rs. 50 million. We have learned that a Cabinet decision was taken on 10 December 2025 to hand over the relevant site to the tourism sector. Many in our areas pursue education through institutions such as NAITA and VTA, which conduct activities in rented buildings. As I asked, why cannot educational activities be carried out at this specific site? If there are further tourism-related activities to be implemented in that area, they can be undertaken on the other available acres of land.
¶ 02 Therefore, considering this matter, is there an opportunity to restart NAITA, VTA and similar educational activities at that location? Many of our students are unable to proceed to university. This is their expectation. As a Government, how will you address this?
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Thursday, 22 January 2026 ·No. 23203 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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/lk/speeches/22418
Cite as: The Hon. Imran Maharoof. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 22 January 2026. No. 23203. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/22418