The minister was addressing farmers at the Anuradhapura Kachcheri. Anuradhapura Government Agent R. M. Wanninayake convened the meeting due to the request of farmer who showed displeasure and unrest over the delay in compensating for land acquired for the Yan Oya reservoir project and in offering them alternate land for sustenance and livelihood.
Farmer representatives told the minister that the Yan Oya reservoir has now been filled and the compensation payment procedure was slow and unsatisfactory. They said their paddy lands are submerged and forest conservation authorities are refusing to allocate alternate land, saying that the environmental impact study report was not released yet.
It was revealed at the meeting that for the compensation payment, Rs. 5,000 million is required and funds are yet to be released. So far only Rs. 320 million has been paid based on government assessment reports.After listening to the plight of Yan Oya farmers, Minister Harrison instructed officials to make arrangements to obtain the assessment reports before January 31.