- President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized that his primary focus is on providing “rights” to the people of the country. He made this statement during a ceremony held today (22) at the Batticaloa District Secretariat, where Urumaya freehold land deeds were awarded to 192 families across 14 divisional secretariat divisions in the Batticaloa district, as part of the government’s initiative to distribute 2 million freehold land deeds.
Under the Urumaya program, 27,595 landless families in Batticaloa district are to receive freehold deeds, with 2,610 already granted. Additionally, 252 English diploma holders from the Higher National Engineering Diploma Institute received teacher appointments today, presided over by the President.
President Wickremesinghe participated in the symbolic handover of Urumaya land deeds and teacher appointments. He also inaugurated the new district secretariat building in Thiraimadu, Batticaloa, constructed at a cost of Rs. 1,055 million. The building project, initiated by then Prime Minister Wickremesinghe and the former Minister of Home Affairs Wajira Abeywardena on September 11, 2016, aims to enhance service efficiency for the people of the Batticaloa district.
The President unveiled the plaque, opened the District Secretariat, and conducted an observation tour of the new facilities.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe further stated the following during his address at the Urumaya land deeds awarding ceremony:
“We have decided to develop Trincomalee as a major economic hub. During the recent visit of the Indian External Affairs Minister to Sri Lanka, we had extensive discussions on securing India’s support for this endeavour.
Under the Agriculture Modernization Program, we plan to launch a large agricultural business in these areas. Additionally, a project to develop undeveloped Mahaweli land in Batticaloa and Trincomalee will commence soon.
We also have plans to enhance tourism from Verugal to Arugam Bay. The Batticaloa Fort is set to be developed for tourism by the Department of Archaeology, and a quality hotel will be established in this province. Dairy farming improvements are also on the agenda.
Following the passage of the Economic Transformation Act this year, significant efforts will be directed towards implementing projects here, enabling Trincomalee to become a major export economy.
With both Eastern and Southeastern Universities located here, we aim to further develop education in this region. The reform of the vocational education sector will provide more vocational training opportunities for our youth.
Due to a recruitment freeze over the past three to four years, honorary appointments were made today to enhance school education. Unemployment remains a significant issue in our country. Therefore, we must create jobs for the youth through a new development process. We have endured a very challenging period, and the common people of this country have suffered greatly. As we rebuild, we will never forget these people.
The Urumaya program was implemented to provide free land rights to the people. You now have legal title to your land, which no one can take from you. We have also initiated a relief program for low-income individuals and have distributed over 27,000 free land deeds in this area. A new system will send government officials directly to villages to distribute these land deeds efficiently, eliminating the need for people to travel to the District or Divisional Secretariat. District Secretaries, Divisional Secretaries, Land Officers, Councilors, and the Governor will visit villages to hand over the land deeds. I have instructed this program to start on the coming Monday and to complete it promptly.
My sole objective is to ensure that land rights are given to the people. I urge everyone to protect their land ownership.”
