Steps are being taken to appoint an audit committee under the supervision of President and Finance Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake to investigate alleged financial irregularities at Divisional Secretariats (DSs) in the Nuwara Eliya District.

Nuwara Eliya District Development Committee Chairperson and Parliamentarian Manjula Suraweeraarachchi said the audit would cover 10 DSs in the district from 2023 to 2026.

Special attention will be paid to alleged fraud involving Aswesuma welfare payments at the Norwood and Talawakelle DSs.

The audit will also examine whether disaster relief payments were properly provided to people affected by Cyclone Ditwah, as well as the Rs 5,000 payments provided through the Samurdhi programme to low-income families during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Payments of Government subsidies and allowances provided to Samurdhi beneficiaries and senior citizens will also be examined.

Suraveerarachchi requested beneficiaries to provide him with any information they may have about possible irregularities before the audit begins.

He said such information could assist the committee in identifying financial irregularities and ensuring that funds intended for beneficiaries had been properly distributed.