plantation workers get ownership deeds for houses

by P.Krishnaswamy

President Mahinda Rajapakse will hand over ownership deeds to 800 independent housing units to plantation workers in the Nuwara Eliya district soon, said S.J.Pathirana, Secretary to the Ministry of Estate Infrastructure and Livestock Development.

This will be followed by the distribution of similar ownership deeds in the coming years in keeping with policies in the Mahinda Chintana to uplift the living conditions of the plantation workers and to completely do away with the line-room dwellings, he said.

The seven perches of land on which each unit is constructed will be free while 50 per cent of the cost of house construction will be recovered from the workers on long term monthly instalments and each instalment is not likely to exceed Rs.800, Pathirana said.

The 800 houses to be handed over were completed last year and the construction of 50,000 more houses will be completed before the end of this year under an accelerated programme, Pathirana said.

Estate Infrastructure and Livestock Development Minister C.B. Ratnayake held meetings with officials of plantation management companies, TUs and Ministries and the question of procuring land for the accelerated housing project was discussed, Pathirana said. The programme will be initially implemented in 10 plantation districts extending from Nuwara Eliya to Galle.

The assistance of ministries, NGOs and international agencies will be obtained by Ratnayake for the successful implementation of the project, Pathirana said.

About 3,500 acres of land will be needed for constructing the 50,000 housing units and land will be procured from the 21 estate management companies, the Janatha Estates Development Board (JERDB), the State Plantations Corporation (SPC) and the Land Development Board, Pathirana said, adding that Land Registrars have been nominated to identify suitable lands.

The Ministry in co-ordination with other ministries and agencies will also initiate steps to promote socio-economic, cultural, infrastructure facilities of the plantation community, Pathirana said.