Unauthorized buildings blocking canals to be relocated: CMC

• Around 22 flooding locations identified within Colombo city  

By Yohan Perera   

Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) is to relocate 500 unauthorized buildings constructed blocking the canals in Colombo City, Commissioner Badrani Jayawardene told the media yesterday.   

Ms. Jayawardene said most of these constructions had blocked the flow of water, which has caused frequent floods within the city of Colombo. Some dwellings are said to be directly blocking waterways while others are built in canal basins. Most of the unauthorized constructions are houses and are located around Beira Lake, Maradana and Kirulapone areas.   

“We have also engaged in dialogues with some building owners to see whether we can come to an amicable solution. We don’t want to cause problems for these owners by demolishing their buildings but looking at providing alternate solutions with the help of our engineers. We also intend to initiate a dialogue with the Urban Development Authority (UDA) to provide alternative locations to those who live in unauthorized dwellings,” she said.   
She said around 22 flooding locations have been identified within the city. “We will draw up the short-term, medium-term and long-term plans to avoid flooding. 

The first stage is to initiate a dialogue with the owners, then will talk with the Divisional Secretary, Sri Lanka Land Reclamation Development Corporation and UDA. Our intention is to do the relocation as a team,” she added.   
According to CMC, some families living in unauthorized dwellings do not want to move even if new houses are provided for them.