Major milestone in construction of 10,000 houses

COLOMBO: The High Commission of India signed two significant agreements for constructing 10,000 houses in plantation areas of Sri Lanka under Phase IV of the Indian Housing Project.

Separate agreements with the two Implementing Agencies, namely the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) and State Engineering Corporation (SEC), are aimed at the early rollout of the construction of the 10,000 houses.

Counsellor and Head of Development Cooperation Wing, Mr. Eldos Mathew Punnoose, Chairman of SEC, Mr. Rathnasiri Kalupahana, and General Manager, NHDA, Mr. Kankanamalage  Ajantha  Janaka, were the signatories to the two agreements.

Phase IV of the Indian Housing Project is spread across 11 Districts and 6 provinces of Sri Lanka.

It may be recalled that the overall commitment of the Government of India under the Indian Housing Project currently stands at 60,000 houses.

While 46,000 houses were completed in Northern and Eastern Provinces in the first two phases, the third phase for constructing 4000 houses in plantation areas is nearing completion.

Housing receives focused attention in India’s people-centric development cooperation partnership with Sri Lanka.

Beyond the Indian Housing Project, 2400 houses are being built across the 25 Districts of Sri Lanka under different housing projects.

India’s development cooperation portfolio is around USD 5 billion, with nearly $600 million in grants.