2024-08-02
It was disclosed at the Committee on Public Accounts that Sri Lanka is among the 3 countries in the world where the population density is more than 300 per square kilometer and the forest population is maintained at 30%. Accordingly, apart from Sri Lanka, only two countries, namely South Korea and Japan, maintain such a forest system, the officials of the Department of Forest Conservation said.
These facts came to light when the Committee on Public Accounts met in Parliament under the Chairmanship of State Minister Hon. Lasantha Alagiyawanna. The Department of Forest Conservation was called before the Committee recently (Jul. 25) to examine the Auditor General's reports and current performance for the years 2020, 2021 and 2022. The percentage of forests in the countries of the world is considered to be 31% and it is commendable that the percentage of forests in Sri Lanka country is at the level of 30%, the officials of the Department of Forest Conservation pointed out.
The Committee questioned the officials as to why the entire forest system in Sri Lanka has not been gazetted. Officials stated that as of 2018, about 1.4 million hectares of forests have been gazetted and there are about two hundred and fifty-six thousand hectares of forests that have not been gazetted. Accordingly, the Committee Chair instructed to gazette the forests which are yet to be Gazzeted soon as possible and to send a report to the Committee within two months, including the time taken to gazette and which authority will be in charge of the forests after gazetting.
Officials pointed out that the highest number of local and foreign tourists visiting the World Heritage Sinharaja Forest has been recorded this year. A total of more than 35000 tourists have come to visit the Sinharaja forest in the past few months. The Committee Chair gave instructions to the officials to increase the necessary facilities for tourists without damaging the forest.
Meanwhile, the Committee questioned the officials regarding the Department of Forest Conservation not maintaining a centralized data system at the head office to provide information. Accordingly, the officials informed the Committee that the preliminary work has already been initiated and the Committee Chair gave instructions to the officials to send a report on the same to the Committee.
Furthermore, the Committee was informed that effective internal control measures have not been established to recover the arrears of the Department of Forest Conservation. The officials of the National Audit Office pointed out to the Committee that there are black stone quarries, small-scale hydroelectric power plants and transmission towers to get shortfall income. According to this, the officials stated that the black stone mining in Melasa exceeds the license granted by the Department of Conservation for black stone quarrying. Accordingly, the Committee Chair gave instructions make arrangements to provide only the required quantity of the explosives required for the same while contacting the relevant agencies while granting licenses for black stone quarrying. Furthermore, the officials pointed out that there is a huge amount of money to be received from the telephone communication institutions through the provision of transmission towers. Accordingly, the Committee Chair gave instructions to the officials to arrange to collect all the arrears.
In the meantime, the Committee gave instructions to pay more attention to the plant named Wallapatta as it is a plant that has a high potential to bring foreign exchange to Sri Lanka. The the officials informed the Committee that there is no law banning the cultivation of Wallapatta plant. However, they pointed out that it is prohibited to cut these plants from forests and carry them illegally without fruit. The officials also pointed out that the imported plant called Aquilaria, which has the same characteristics as the Wallapatta plant, has already started cultivation in Sri Lanka. The officials further stated that it is not easy to distinguish between Wallapatta and Aquilaria plants. It was pointed out that due to the difficulty of identification, the smugglers are trying to advertise the Wallapatta plants cut from the forests as plants obtained from private plantations. To avoid that situation, the officials informed the Committee that they will do the necessary work to identify the two types of plants through a scientific method.
State Minister Hon. Prasanna Ranaweera, Members of Parliament Hon. Madhura Withanage, Hon. (Dr.) Upul Galappaththi, and Hon. Isuru Dodangoda, and a group of officials were present at this Committee meeting held.
2026-09-25
The Committee on High Posts of Parliament recently granted approval for the appointment of a new Ambassador, a High Commissioner, and a chairperson of a state institution.The approvals were granted when the Committee on High Posts met under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya.Accordingly, the Committee approved the appointment of Mrs. Anzul Banu Jhan as the new Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Republic of the Philippines and Mr. Chandana Rohana Kumara Ambagolla as the new High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Canada.The Committee also approved the appointment of Mr. Nusith Kumarathunga as the new Chairman of Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation Limited.
2026-09-23
A special committee appointed by the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport, Highways and Urban Development, to address the difficulties faced by persons with disabilities in obtaining driving licences, held its first meeting in Parliament recently, with particular attention focused on the steps that should be taken to make the process of obtaining driving licences more accessible and streamlined for persons with disabilities.At the meeting, attended by Hon. Members of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva, Dinesh Hemantha and M.A.C.S. Chathuri Gangani, extensive discussions were held on the practical and legal challenges faced by persons with disabilities both in obtaining driving licences and in modifying and using vehicles to suit their respective disabilities.Attention was drawn to the medical examinations conducted by the National Transport Medical Institute (NTMI), the medical recommendations issued based on the nature of a person’s disability, and the procedure for issuing driving licences accordingly. Discussions also focused on conducting medical examinations at district level, expanding the range of vehicle types for which driving licences may be issued to persons with visual impairments, taking into consideration medical criteria including the field of vision, installing appropriate safety equipment in vehicles, and proposed amendments to the relevant Gazette notifications.The legal framework governing the issuance of driving licences to persons with hearing impairments, the use of special identification signs, and the assistance of sign-language interpreters were also discussed. Attention was also given to procedures for modifying vehicles to suit the individual needs arising from a person’s disability.Proposals were also put forward regarding issuing licences to one individual for multiple vehicles, simplifying the medical examination process, and improving the online system between the National Transport Medical Institute and the Department of Motor Traffic.The need for the necessary amendments to the relevant Gazette notifications, expanding services at the regional level, and creating awareness among relevant institutions to make the process of obtaining driving licences more accessible and streamlined for persons with disabilities was also emphasised. The importance of taking further steps to ensure the transportation rights of persons with disabilities while ensuring road safety was also stressed.Officials of the Ministry of Transport, Highways and Urban Development and other relevant representatives attended the meeting.
2026-09-23
The Promotion of Export Agriculture (Amendment) Bill was considered and approved at a recent meeting of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Environment, Agriculture and Resource Sustainability.The matter was discussed when the Committee, chaired by Hon. Member of Parliament Hector Appuhamy, met on the occasion under the chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament, Attorney-at-Law Bhagya Sri Herath.As part of the restructuring of the institutional structure of the Department of Export Agriculture, new positions were created and existing positions were upgraded, including changing the designation of “Director” to “Director General.” However, the relevant provisions of the Export Agriculture Promotion Act, No. 46 of 1992, had not been amended accordingly. Furthermore, other related designations that required amendment had also not been revised. The necessary amendments have therefore been introduced through this Bill.It was also noted that the definitions of export agricultural crops referred to in the Act as “notified agricultural crops” have become practically incompatible with current production and market conditions. Accordingly, the need has arisen to revise and update the relevant definition so that it is appropriate for the present and future export agriculture sector.Accordingly, the Bill provides that, in place of the definition of the term “Export Agricultural Crop” in Section 19 of the Act, the term shall mean means any crop identified as a crop that have an export potential in addition to the local consumption other than paddy, vegetables, fruits, root crops and additional food crops belonging to the category of food crops and declared by the Minister in charge of the subject as “a notified agricultural crop” under section 2 of this Act. It further provides that any crop identified as a plantation crop shall not be included in this definition.The Committee also inquired into matters relating to the export of crops from Sri Lanka, including pepper. It was revealed that Sri Lanka exported 12,910 metric tonnes of pepper in 2025, with India being the country's largest buyer.Several members of the Committee, along with officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation, participated in the Committee meeting.
2026-09-23
The Sectoral Oversight Committee on Education, Manpower and Human Capital has decided to appoint a Parliamentary subcommittee to study the salary disparities arising when teachers are appointed to the Principals’ Service, as well as the resulting reluctance among senior teachers to enter the Principals’ Service, and to make recommendations in this regard.These matters were discussed when the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Education, Manpower and Human Capital met in Parliament recently, under the chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament, Attorney-at-Law Hesha Withanage.Particular attention was drawn to the salary disparity arising from the fact that, under the Sri Lanka Principals’ Service Minute issued on 22 October 2014, entry into the Principals’ Service from the Teachers’ Service is considered a “new appointment” rather than a “promotion.”Officials pointed out that this situation is further aggravated by the significant difference in salary increments when a teacher is appointed from Grade 1 of the Teachers’ Service to Grade III of the Principals’ Service. They also noted that, although an adjustment allowance was introduced under Circular No. 03/2014 to address the salary difference arising at the time of appointment to the Principals’ Service, a salary gap emerges again as the teacher’s service progresses because they do not receive the higher salary increments that they would have received had they remained in the Teachers’ Service.It was also discussed that, as a result, senior and experienced teachers in Grades 1 and 2-I of the Teachers’ Service are being discouraged from sitting for the Principals’ Service examination and entering the Principals’ Service. Accordingly, attention was drawn to amending the Service Minute so that entry into the Principals’ Service from the Teachers’ Service would be treated as a “promotion” rather than a “new appointment.”The procedure for granting promotions within the Teachers’ Service was also discussed. The Committee pointed out that a newly appointed teacher entering the service with a university qualification takes approximately 19 years of service to reach Grade 1 of the Teachers’ Service.Attention was also drawn to the direct recruitment of Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) graduates to Grade 2 of the Teachers’ Service in accordance with the Teachers’ Service Minute.Meanwhile, it was revealed that a verbal agreement had been reached with the Public Service Commission to recruit B.Ed. graduates as teachers under the previous system until 2030. Accordingly, it was stated that a Cabinet Memorandum has been submitted to recruit B.Ed. graduates to Grade 2 of the Teachers’ Service during this year.It was also discussed that these recruitments are planned to be carried out separately from the ongoing recruitment process for 23,000 teachers, based on subject-specific vacancies existing at provincial level.The Committee also considered the need to give universities until 2030 to update B.Ed. degree programmes so that they correspond with the actual subject requirements of the school system. In particular, the Committee highlighted the need to introduce specialised B.Ed. programmes in fields such as Science, Mathematics and Primary Education.Meanwhile, the Committee also considered the issue of recovering excess salary payments made to 261 laboratory attendants and security guards in the Southern Province. It was revealed that approximately Rs. 50.8 million had been overpaid as a result of the employees being placed on the 12th salary step instead of the initial salary step of the relevant salary scale in 2008 and 2009.It was stated that the matter was identified in 2016 and was subsequently examined through an audit query in 2022. To date, Rs. 15.1 million has been recovered through the suspension of salary increments and deductions from salaries.The representatives who appeared before the Committee pointed out that the employees were not directly responsible for this administrative error and that their letters of appointment had specified a particular salary scale. Accordingly, the Committee decided to bring the matter to the attention of the Governor of the Southern Province by way of a letter, with a view to obtaining his positive intervention regarding the difficulties faced by the employees.
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