- President Vows Commitment to Construct a Nation of Dignity for All.
- President Reiterates Invitation to All Parties to Collaborate on Government Programs.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe underscored the distinctive accomplishment of the current government in providing land rights to the people of the country without the need for a revolution, despite numerous global movements advocating for land rights.
Highlighting the initial success of the present government in in rescuing the country from bankruptcy, President Ranil Wickremesinghe also emphasized additional achievements such as the “Aswasuma” program benefiting 02 million people and salary increases for 1.5 million government employees.
The President emphasized that the government achieved significant progress for the country’s betterment in just two years with the support of a partial parliament. He encouraged everyone to contemplate the potential advancements the country could achieve with the backing of all parliament members.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe made these remarks during a ceremony at Rangiri Dambulu Stadium this afternoon (05), where 10,000 freehold titles were awarded to farmers as part of the first phase of the Urumaya program.
The President highlighted that granting land rights to foreigners under the Government Land Ordinance Act would not have been an impediment to providing the same rights to the people.
As part of the 2024 budget proposals, President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s eighth proposal aims to grant full ownership of government lands to farmers, which were disposed of under the Land Development Ordinance Act of 1935 through permits and conditional grants.
Fulfilling a longstanding aspiration of the nation, the ‘Urumaya’ program, aimed at granting freehold rights to land, will be rolled out nationwide under the President’s guidance, benefiting an estimated 02 million farming families. The 2024 budget proposal allocates Rs. 02 billion for the ‘Urumaya’ program’s implementation.
Applicants seeking full ownership of land through the ‘Urumaya’ program will receive freehold titles in three main stages. To streamline the process and address community concerns promptly, a Urumaya National Operations Secretariat has been established under the Presidential Secretariat, coordinating relevant institutions.
Symbolically, President Ranil Wickremesinghe personally distributed land deeds to farmers.
Additionally, he inaugurated the ‘Centre of Excellence’ at Dambulla Stadium as part of the “National Cricket Development Pathway” program, designed to offer equal opportunities to cricketers with natural talents for national team representation.
Furthermore, President Wickremesinghe opened a new swimming pool on the stadium premises and actively observed the pool’s practical activities.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe inaugurated the innovative stadium lighting system.
Furthermore, during the ceremony, he laid the foundation stone for the construction of the Media Centre, the new auditorium, and the indoor stadium at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium and the ‘Centre of Excellence
