It was revealed at the Committee on Public Accounts that a number of complaints on illegal land filling at the Muthurajawela reserve had not elicited any response.

The Committee on Public Accounts said that the Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation, the Central Environmental Authority, the Urban Development Authority and the Agrarian Services Department had received a number of complaints regarding the unauthorized filling of lands belonging to the Muthurajawela Ecological Zone, but those institutions had not taken formal action on those complaints.

Although the Muthurajawela Zone has been declared as a Sanctuary by Gazette Notification No. 947/13 of 1996, its boundaries have not yet been demarcated.

The Committee on Public Accounts was held under the patronage of its Chairman Prof. Tissa Vitarana at the Parliament Complex.

The Committee on Public Accounts also decided to appoint a Joint Committee consisting of all parties responsible for the conservation of the Muthurajawela Sanctuary.

Accordingly, Dr Anil Jasinghe, Secretary to the Ministry of Environment, will chair the committee and its activities will commence in the next two weeks.