Railway Dept. lands to be leased to grow food crops

The Cabinet has greenlighted a proposal to lease 14,000 acres of reserved lands belonging to the Sri Lanka Railway Department (SLRD) to farmers and other priority groups for the cultivation of short-term crops.

Minister of Transport and Highways and Mass Media Bandula Gunawardana on Monday sought the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers to lease out these reserved lands to farmers through farmer organisations, resident near railway tracks and low-income earners on a one-year concessionary lease basis.

According to the Department of Government Information, the total extent of reserved lands belonging to SLRD is approximately 14,000 acres and around 10 percent of this land mass has already been occupied for various purposes.

Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Wildlife and Forest Resources Conservation, Mahinda Amaraweera noted that short-term crops such as mung beans, cowpea, corn, chilli, yam varieties as well as vegetables will be cultivated in these landblocks.

He pointed out that these crops can be cultivated with minimum water usage without adding much burden to the water supply of National Water Supply and Drainage Board.