PM Harini urges officials to step up Colombo flood preparations

Development projects deliver results to the public far more swiftly when political authorities and the public service collaborate towards a shared, people-focused goal.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya made these remarks while attending a progress review meeting for the Rathmalana Kandawala Road and drainage rehabilitation project at the Western Province Council Auditorium yesterday (18).

Work on the project within the Dehiwala–Mount Lavinia Municipal Council limits commenced on 10 September 2026, with completion scheduled before 30 June 2027, a statement from the Prime Minister's Media Division noted.

Executed by the Provincial Road Development Authority, the initiative includes constructing a bridge at a cost of 64 million rupees, rehabilitating the drainage system for 930 million rupees, and upgrading the road for 115 million rupees.

Special attention was directed towards tasks allocated to the Western Province Council, the Irrigation Department, and the Ratmalana Divisional Secretariat, alongside ongoing plans by the Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation.

Appreciating the swift progress and close inter-agency coordination, the Prime Minister urged officials to take advance measures to control flooding in Colombo and surrounding districts ahead of expected heavy rainfall in the Western Province later this year.

Colombo District Coordinating Committee Chairman and Member of Parliament Lakshman Nipuna Arachchi, Ratmalana Divisional Coordinating Committee Chairperson and Member of Parliament Samanmalee Gunasinghe, Roads Sub-Committee Chairman Dewananda Suraweera, Dehiwala–Mount Lavinia Municipal Council Mayor Parakum Shantha, and Western Province Chief Secretary K.G. Pradeep Pushpakumara were among the officials present at the discussion.