Under the National Road Rehabilitation Project covering 1,500 kilometers across the country, several roads in the Homagama electoral district have begun to be renovated under the patronage of Transport, Highways and Mass Media Minister Dr.Bandula Gunawardhana.
The roads set for development under this project include Vikramage Mawatha in Pannipitiya Hiripitiya, the road from Mahinda Mawatha in Pitipana North to Yakdessa Bridge, the Meegoda-Kajugahadeniya Nagahawatta Road, and the Porakanatta Second Lane.
Due to prolonged neglect, all these roads have fallen into severe disrepair. Residents have faced numerous difficulties in transportation due to the lack of proper responses to their repeated requests from various authorities.
Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardhana has directed the Transport and Highways Ministry and the Road Development Authority to take necessary steps to complete these projects within a very short period and hand them over to the public.
Speaking at the event, the Minister stated, “For a long time, I have taught economics, commerce, and finance to a large number of people in this country. Unfortunately, I have never had the opportunity to teach the Leader of the Opposition or Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the Parliament. Over the past four to five decades, politicians have been spreading disinformation country-wide. After gaining power, every government has faced the primary challenge of not being able to generate sufficient tax revenue to cover state expenditures. As a result, loans are obtained locally and internationally. Continuous borrowing to cover budget deficits and balance of payments deficits has led to consequences not understood by the public, resulting in more demands and protests for salary increases and other benefits.
“During such situations, previous governments resorted to printing money to meet demands like salary increases, leading to an unsustainable increase in the cost of living. The country reached a point where it could not repay the borrowed money. Eventually, the world indicated that Sri Lanka could not progress further under these conditions, making loans unsustainable. Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Ghana, and many African countries have faced similar crises. Sri Lanka, too, had to seek assistance from international organisations that provided solutions to such crises. Based on the recommendations of a Cabinet subcommittee, Clifford Chance and Lazard were selected for debt restructuring assistance. Recently, the President expressed special gratitude to these companies for their support in rescuing the country from the situation it faced.
“Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took over the country at a time when no one dared to take responsibility, has created a situation where the country can breathe again by reaching an Extended Fund Facility agreement with the International Monetary Fund. We are still proceeding without debt repayment. No debt repayments will occur until 2028. Countries to which we owe have been assured of repayment. Accordingly, Japan, India, and France have signed an agreement as an official debt committee to operate until 2042. The agreement signed by the government is expected to be presented to Parliament on the 9th. Any deviation or amendment from these agreements will cause the world to abandon our country.
“With the signing of agreements with the International Monetary Fund, there is an opportunity to restart the halted development projects.”
The event was attended by the Deputy Director-General of the Road Development Authority, the Chief Operations Officer of Sahasya Investments K.W. Kandambi, project engineers of the Road Development Authority, Local Government officials, public representatives and other officials.
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