What not to do about the central hills

THE President wants to stop new construction above 5,000 feet elevation and move out people who currently live there.

- By Prof. Rohan Samarajiiva

The Minister representing the Kandy District, K.D. Lalkantha, muses about shifting the entire city of Kandy (which is well below 5,000 feet) to Ampara or Polonnaruwa.

Thankfully, these are musings and not official Government decisions. Not as bad as the blanket bans on construction 100 meters from the high-water mark (increased to 200 meters on the East Coast) by the Chandrika Kumaratunge Government after the tsunami. People whose homes were destroyed were badly affected. The funds were available, but the land they owned could not be built on. There was no science behind the 100/200 meters prohibition. There is no science behind either the 5,000 feet proposal or the Kandy relocation idea.

Politicians appear to prefer easy to-explain rules more than evidence-based ones. They create the conditions for arbitrary decisions by politicians and officials.

It is hoped that these ideas will be subject to robust debate and that good sense will prevail. In the meantime, there are several things the Government must not do.

It is surprising that politicians whose world view includes an affection for planning are unaware of the National Physical Policy and Plan 2050 (NPPP 2050) developed through broad consultative procedures and approved by a Council headed by the President in 2019. It identifies a central environmental fragile area that is “highly vulnerable to landslides and plays a crucial role in sustaining water resources.” The identified areas include the totality of the Kandy, Nuwara Eliya and Kegalla districts and listed DS divisions in the Matale, Ratnapura, Monaragala, Galle, Matara, Kalutara and Colombo districts.