President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that next year’s (2027) Budget would place special emphasis on finding lasting solutions to the public’s long-standing drinking water issues.
The President made these remarks while participating in a discussion on Wednesday (8) to review the progress of projects implemented under this year’s (2026) Budget allocations for the Housing, Construction and Water Supply Ministry and to discuss the Ministry’s budgetary requirements for 2027.
Extensive discussions were also held on allocating the largest Budgetary provision in the country’s history in the 2027 Budget to address drinking water issues across the island.
The meeting reviewed the progress of projects implemented under the 2026 Budget by all departments and institutions under the Ministry’s purview, including the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB), the National Community Water Supply Department, the National Housing Development Authority and the Ministry’s Resettlement Division.
The President pointed out that the existence of multiple institutions under different Ministries dealing with the same subject had resulted in inefficiencies in project implementation. He further noted that maintaining institutions established many years ago for objectives and needs that are no longer relevant had imposed an unnecessary financial burden on the Government. He therefore instructed officials to take steps to discontinue all institutions that are no longer productive or effective.
Meanwhile, the Government is taking the necessary steps to strengthen water management in anticipation of possible El Niño conditions in the coming months, the Housing, Construction and Water Supply Minister, Susil Ranasinghe has stated. He said that a coordinated mechanism involving all institutions responsible for water management has been established to ensure effective preparedness and response. Ranasinghe noted that while Sri Lanka typically experiences dry weather during this month (July) and next month (August), this year's dry spell could be more severe than usual. He added that although the North-East monsoon is expected to begin around mid-September, rainfall during September may be below normal.
However, rainfall is forecast to increase during October, November, and December. He said that the Government has already held discussions with the Agriculture Department, the Irrigation Department, the Mahaweli Authority, the NWSDB, and Electricity officials to develop the best possible water management strategy to address the expected conditions. He further stated that all relevant institutions have been instructed to prepare their response plans, which will be reviewed again on 20 July.
Elsewhere, responding to a question regarding the restoration of abandoned irrigation tanks to promote paddy cultivation in the Trincomalee District, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated in Parliament on Wednesday that, according to data received for the year 2021, 15 out of 210 abandoned tanks in the District have already been rehabilitated, while the remaining 195 are scheduled for restoration. Similarly, eight out of 25 abandoned anicuts have been rehabilitated, with the remaining 17 to be restored.
She explained that the principal reasons for these delays have been the failure to release lands under the Forest Conservation Department and the Wildlife Conservation Department to the Agrarian Development Department, together with the lack of adequate financial allocations. The Government intends to address these issues and expedite the rehabilitation of these irrigation structures for agricultural purposes. The relevant Divisional Secretariats are currently facilitating the release of the remaining 195 tanks and 17 anicuts that had been inaccessible to farmers due to their location within the boundaries of the Forest Conservation Department and the Wildlife Conservation Department.
The Premier further noted that, under the Sustainable Land Management Programme, reserved and historically significant areas such as Navik Wedi Bima, Lokusober, Kudasober, Seruwila Allei, Trikonamadu and Paravi Doopatha, situated within 33,563 acres of land under the Forest Conservation Department and 31,627 acres under the Wildlife Conservation Department, are being reviewed to facilitate the release of lands occupied by communities prior to 1985 or to provide suitable alternative lands.
This land release programme, which is already being implemented in Districts including Jaffna, Vavuniya, Mannar, Batticaloa and Anuradhapura, is expected to support the expansion of paddy cultivation by preparing these lands through the Agriculture Department and the Agrarian Development Department and handing them over to the public, thereby increasing the country’s rice production.
Further, the President instructed officials to expedite the resettlement of people displaced by the war and to implement a housing assistance programme to support the completion of partially constructed houses belonging to low-income families.