The Metro Colombo Development Project launched by the Urban Development Authority (UDA) under the guidance of former Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, now the Pohottuwa presidential candidate has flouted existing legal and policy safeguards and standards, official sources claimed.
Rajapaksa has given orders to demolish walls of public and private property and forcibly evicted shanty dwellers in Colombo using the military and his brother former President Rajapaksa’s power to beautify Colombo.
Slave Island residents after the demolition of their homes, February 2014/Megara Tegal.
The completion of the project has been delayed incurring additional expenditure to state coffers due to improper planning of the previous regime, UDA officials alleged.
Of particular concern are the involvement of the military controlled UDA in forced evictions, the modalities of which are similar to those employed in the North and East of Sri Lanka,
The report of experts argues that viewing the forced evictions in Colombo as part of a development project only serves to hide the enormous social, public and human costs.
The total estimated cost of the Project had been US$ 321 million equivalent to LKR 42,031.44 million.
Out of that, a sum of US$ 213 million or 66.35 per cent of the total cost is financed by the International Bank for the Reconstruction and Development and the remaining amount is financed by the Government of Sri Lanka.
Even though this project was scheduled to commence on 10 July 2012 and be completed by 30 June 2017, the duration of the Project had been extended in 02 instances.
Accordingly, the project is due to be completed by 30 June 2020. However, a sum of US$ 87.7 million equivalent to Rs.12, 198 million from the funds received under World Bank loans had been utilized by the end of the year 2017.
In addition to that, a sum of LKR 3, 691 million or US$ 25.7 million had been spent by the Government of Sri Lanka.
Accordingly, an amount of approximately 41 per cent of the loan had been utilized after 5 1/5 years of the implementation of the project.
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