Attention has been drawn towards the importance of accurately surveying and swiftly completing the mapping of all land plots in Sri Lanka during a meeting of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Environment, Agriculture and Resource Sustainability in Parliament.

The matter was discussed when the committee met in Parliament, under the chairmanship of Member of Parliament Hector Appuhamy, to review the annual reports and annual performance reports of several State corporations, departments, commissions and boards for the years 2021, 2022, and 2023.

During the meeting, officials from the Survey Department informed the committee that, as estimated, Sri Lanka has approximately 16.5 million land plots, of which only about 2.5 million have been surveyed and mapped, the Department of Communication of Parliament said in a statement.

Emphasizing the importance of completing the surveying and mapping of the remaining land plots as soon as possible, the committee chairman stated that all relevant parties would be summoned before the committee to discuss the necessary actions and the future work plan.

The committee also reviewed the annual reports of the Land Reform Commission for the years 2022 and 2023.

Additionally, the committee held extensive discussions regarding the revenue loss caused by the Land Reform Commission granting land without entering into legally valid agreements. The committee Chairman emphasized the importance of issuing land plots under proper lease agreements in the future and instructed officials to formulate a mechanism to recover the outstanding lease payments and present a comprehensive report on all arrears to the committee, according to the Department of Communication of Parliament.