Port City Project:

AG's Dept to resolve legal issues

by Ranil Wijayapala

The Attorney General's Department is now addressing 24 legal issues relating to the Colombo Port City project, Megapolis and Western Development Minister Champika Ranawaka said.

He said the AG's Department had narrowed down the 37 legal issues to 24 to give clearance for the project to go ahead.

The Minister said basic legal issues relating to the transfer of the agreement from the Ports Authority to the Urban Development Authority(UDA) and the legality of the UDA being involved in development activities in the sea have to be ironed out. The boundaries of the Colombo Municipal Council have also to be gazetted to include the Port City project as part of the Colombo city.Minister Ranawaka said the legal and environment issues have to be resolved before the project gets off the ground..

He said the project will definitely be a part of the Marine City Project of the Western Megapolis Development plan. A Coast Conservation Department(CCD) official said the Megapolis and Western Development Ministry are yet to clarify public comments on the Supplementary Environmental Impact Assessment on the project."The Ministry is expected to send the clarifications early this week, as the CCD has forwarded more public comments received in the post to the Megapolis Ministry", he said.

The CCD has already appointed a technical committee to evaluate the clarification by the Megapolis Ministry and a meeting will be held between the committee and Ministry officials to discuss clarifications for public comments before giving environmental clearance for the project.