President Pledges New Clauses to Protect Estate Community Rights in Future Agreements

COLOMBO (News 1st) - President Anura Kumara Dissanayake says new clauses will be included in future agreements with plantation companies to ensure the rights of the estate community are protected.

Speaking at the opening of the Navodayapuram housing project in Poonagala, Badulla, the President said agreements with plantation companies are expected to be renewed soon, with existing agreements scheduled to expire by 2042.

He said the government is focusing on including provisions in the new agreements to safeguard the rights of estate communities, including their access to land.

The President also announced that a Central Highlands Protection Authority would be established by the end of this year or early next year, with powers relating to biodiversity, soil conservation, forests, wildlife, irrigation and agriculture brought under one authority.

The Navodayapuram project provides 50 families displaced by the 2023 Kabaragala landslide with 10-perch plots of land and fully equipped 550-square-foot houses.

The project was implemented under the government’s “A Rich Country – A Beautiful Life” policy.