COLOMBO — Sri Lanka's government is reviewing tens of thousands of acres of protected land in the eastern district of Trincomalee with the aim of returning land, or providing alternative plots, to people who lived there before 1985, Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya told Parliament on Wednesday.
Responding to questions from Kugathasan, an opposition lawmaker representing Trincomalee District from the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK), Ms. Amarasuriya said the initiative forms part of a permanent land administration programme covering former protected areas that are now under the jurisdiction of the Department of Forest Conservation and the Department of Wildlife Conservation.
The programme includes approximately 33,563 acres administered by the Forest Department and 31,627 acres administered by the Wildlife Department. Areas under review include the Navy headquarters area, Periya Sober, Siriya Sober, Seruvila Allai, Trikonamadu and Puraath Theevu.
Ms. Amarasuriya said the government was examining those areas to determine whether lands occupied by residents before 1985 could be released or whether affected families should instead receive alternative land.
The Prime Minister also outlined plans to restore abandoned irrigation infrastructure in Trincomalee District to boost agricultural production.
According to government data from 2021, 210 irrigation tanks in the district had fallen into disuse. Of those, 15 have been rehabilitated, while work remains on the remaining 195. Of 25 abandoned dams, eight have been restored, with 17 still awaiting rehabilitation.
She said the restoration programme had been delayed because lands controlled by the Forest and Wildlife Departments had not yet been transferred to the Department of Agrarian Development and because funding had been insufficient.
The relevant Divisional Secretariats are now taking steps to release the 195 irrigation tanks and 17 dams that have remained inaccessible to farmers because they lie within the boundaries of protected forest and wildlife areas, she said.
Ms. Amarasuriya said the broader land-release programme was also being implemented in the districts of Jaffna, Vavuniya, Mannar, Batticaloa and Anuradhapura. Lands released under the programme would be rehabilitated through the agriculture and agrarian development authorities before being allocated to farmers for paddy cultivation.
The government expects the initiative to increase Sri Lanka's domestic rice production, she said.
