Protested before, accepted now

Earmarked for multiple tourism activities including sports and entertainment, spa Lands to be leased out for 30 years A project which was originally initiated under the Mahinda Rajapaksa government back in 2010 but was objected to by the then opposition

- By KELUM BANDARA

A tourism project first proposed under the 2010/2015 Mahinda Rajapaksa government in 2010 - and opposed at the time by the then opposition citing different concerns - has now been approved by the NPP government, offering to grant a 30-year lease of Baththalangunduwa and Uchchamunai islands off Kalpitiya for tourism development.

The project was the brainstorm of the Rajapaksa government but could not proceed amidst heavy opposition protests which eventually led to it being abandoned. The reason for the then opposition was that they did not want vital state lands being sold off to foreign investors.