Hon. Kins Nelson

¶ 01 Mr. Presiding Member, I am pleased to speak while several amendments related to CIABOC are being presented.

¶ 02 This House has repeatedly discussed the coal issue. Both Government and Opposition spoke, yet the Government has failed to rectify it. At this morning’s meeting of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Environment, Agriculture and Sustainable Resources, I asked officials about environmental damage from the imported coal. They accepted there is significant damage. They also acknowledged that if 85% of power has to be generated from oil because of poor coal quality, that is a serious problem, leading to higher consumer tariffs.

¶ 03 Nine coal vessels have already arrived, with 11 more expected. If this poor coal continues, turbines could be damaged. Then we must produce power with fuel oil and diesel, raising prices for citizens. When we ask the line Minister, he says it is not his subject. So whom should we ask?

¶ 04 Parliament will not sit tomorrow. National problems must be discussed here. During the Aragalaya period, though MPs were assaulted, Parliament did not shut down. Even without fuel and electricity, we did not close Parliament. Shutting Parliament will not solve problems. All 225 must meet and discuss how to face this crisis. Savings from a closed sitting do not reach consumers.

¶ 05 Therefore, we propose that the President, Prime Minister, Opposition Leader, and Party Leaders meet together to discuss a way forward.

¶ 06 On corruption: you came to power promising to end corruption. It has been over a year, yet is corruption over? Due to substandard coal alone, losses are Rs. 8.4 billion. No one has fixed it. If it is due to the line Minister’s inaction or another authority’s failure, at least the President should intervene. To date, the President has not spoken on this. People are watching. The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) warns that by April–June, power cuts may be inevitable. At least the line Minister should fix this.

¶ 07 Mr. Presiding Member, in the Gal Oya village of the Hingurakgoda Divisional Secretariat, 43 farmers have cultivated 80 acres of paddy. Now, the Department of Wildlife Conservation has filed cases and told them to stop. This is a registered farmer organization since 2002. I table the relevant documents.

¶ 08 Furthermore, in 2012 Rs. 27 million was allocated to repair canals there, and in 2025 Rs. 45 million to rehabilitate the village tank. Yet the Wildlife Department now says, “Do not enter the fields,” though they themselves demarcated boundaries with stones in 2018. Forty-three farming families have now been rendered helpless. Please inquire and resolve this.

¶ 09 Also, at Dimbulagala DS, farmers cultivate 7,688 acres around the Pimburattawa tank. There are 3,100 farmer families and 105 fisher families. The Government assigned silt removal to an institution. Despite GPS points given by the Environment Ministry, work is not done accordingly; large-scale sand mining is occurring, harming the bund and preventing fishing. This is a traditional tank supporting many families. Please intervene.

¶ 10 My time is up. In closing: the substandard coal issue is what everyone asks about. The Government must give answers. PUCSL has presented charts. Please pay attention. Thank you.