The Hon. K.V. Samantha Viddyarathna - Minister of Plantation and Community Infrastructure

¶ 01 Mr. Speaker, the answer to Question No. 6 (1931/2026) is as follows.

¶ 02 (a) (i) The number of estates under Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) that have been privatized is 398. This comprises 204 estates leased by the Janatha Estates Development Board (JEDB) and 194 estates leased by the Sri Lanka State Plantation Corporation (SLSPC).

¶ 03 In addition, there are Government-owned plantation companies: Halawatha Plantations, Elkaduwa Plantations and Kurunegala Plantations, under which there are 32 estates—22 given by JEDB and 10 by SLSPC.

¶ 04 Further, SLSPC presently manages 16 estates, and JEDB manages 17.

¶ 05 (ii) Provided in Annex 01. As it is voluminous, it is tabled. - Placed in the Library.

¶ 06 (iii) JEDB and SLSPC have leased the above estates to the RPCs for 53 years, effective from June 1992 to June 2045.

¶ 07 (iv) The total number of employees in each estate, by category (permanent/temporary) for 2025 as submitted by the RPCs, is in Annex 02.

¶ 08 Annex 02 (summary): - Total permanent workers in 24 RPCs: 76,044 - Total temporary workers: 18,955

¶ 09 Regarding land extents (2023/2024 data): Total land under RPCs and Government plantation companies is 229,932.448 hectares. Of this, 18,884.55 hectares are under roads, factories, line rooms, etc., which is 8.21% of the total.

¶ 10 (b) (i) Annex 03 provides a summary of RPC profit/loss before tax for the last five years (source: RPCs’ Annual Reports).

¶ 11 (iii) Yes. As the RPCs are private companies incorporated under the Conversion of Public Corporations or Government-Owned Business Undertakings into Public Companies Act, No. 23 of 1987, read with the Companies Act, No. 17 of 1982, they are audited by private audit firms and the audited status is disclosed in their annual reports. State audit does not apply.

¶ 12 (iv) Not applicable.

¶ 13 (c) There is no legal requirement to table private companies’ financial statements in Parliament.