President Maithripala Sirisena says the government will look into the future activities of the Uma Oya Multipurpose Development project, while giving priority to resolve the problems faced by the people affected by the project.
He was participating in a special discussion on the problems faced by the people affected by the projects at the President’s official Residence on Friday.
Representatives of the Civil Organizations participated in the discussion. They presented the details of the issues that the people in Uva Province have to face due to the Uma Oya Project.
The President assured speedy action to resolve the issues related to housing facilities, drinking water and destruction of the crops.
President Sirisena said the government after consulting with independent technical specialists team will look into the possibility of temporarily halting the works of the project until they find solutions for the difficulties faced by the people.
A team of Norwegian Specialists is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka at the first week of August and a specialist from Germany has already started to investigate the issue, the President said. President Sirisena said the Government will consider the possibility of taking forward the project according to the specialists’ ideas and suggestions, while resolving the existing issues, minimizing damages and utilizing modern technology to a maximum level.
Ministers Mahinda Amaraweera, Harin Fernando, Vijith Vijithamuni Soysa, Uva Province Chief Minister Chamara Sampath Dasanayaka, Uva Provicial Councillor Samantha Vidyarathna, Anura Dissanayake, Secretary of the Mahaweli Development and Environment, Deputy Project Director of the Uma Oya Multipurpose Development Project P.B. Amarasekara and others participated.