Cabinet approves 1930 low income houses for Rs.4.8 billion

By Uditha Jayasinghe

Cabinet yesterday approved funding for 1930 housing units for low income families in Colombo at a cost of over Rs.4.8 billion.

Cabinet Spokesman Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told media that the government is dedicated to providing better housing for slum dwellers and that this should not be used as a political weapon for elections.

“A government that cares for this country will take decisions that are unpopular in the short term. They will not be afraid to take up the challenge for the sake of creating a better country. It is the selfish parties that take popular decisions without considering the long term results,” he said.

Up to now five low income housing projects have been approved for implementation by the Government. Under this 14,398 housing units are to be constructed.

The proposal was made by the President, in his capacity as the Minister of Defence to implement the housing programmes.

Accordingly Cabinet gave approval for construction of 384 housing units at locations identified by the Urban Development Authority (UDA) at a total cost of Rs.960 million. Under the second project, construction of 1000 housing units at locations identified by the UDA at a total cost of Rs.2500 million and another 550 housing units at a total cost of Rs.1375 million have also been earmarked.

Where these locations would be were not revealed to the media. It is estimated that the government will have to construct at least 30, 000 new housing units for low income families to clear 1600 slum areas in Colombo.