Land rights for plantation dwellers discussed

The Cabinet has approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to identify areas occupied by Plantation Workers on state-owned plantation lands managed by the State Plantation Corporation and regional plantation companies and to draft legislation to designate these areas as new settlement villages formally.

A special discussion in this regard was also held at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

In a significant development, all parties have agreed on the timely proposal to enact legislation declaring areas where Plantation Workers dwell within state-managed plantations, overseen by the State Plantation Corporation and regional companies, as new villages.

Parliamentarian Mano Ganesan emphasized the crucial need to secure land rights for current plantation dwellers under this initiative, submitting a corresponding proposal to the President.

Addressing the matter, President Ranil Wickremesinghe underscored the government’s ongoing commitment to implementing programs that provide freehold land and housing rights to residents across villages, towns, and plantations.

Furthermore, President Ranil Wickremesinghe recommended initiating the legislative process by consulting regional plantation companies and proposed the formation of a committee comprising parliamentarians representing plantation communities and relevant stakeholders to oversee the process.

Minister of Water Supply and Estate Infrastructure Development Jeevan Thondaman, State Minister for Education Arvind Kumar, and MPs Mano Ganesan, Palani Thigambaram, Vadivel Suresh, Velu Kumar, M. Rameshwaran, and M. Udayakumar participated in the discussion, along with Secretary to the President Saman Ekanayake and Secretary to the Ministry of Water Supply and Estate Infrastructure Development A.C.M. Nafeel.

Secretary to the Ministry of State Plantation Enterprises Reforms Dr. Sugath Yalegama and other officials were also in attendance.