Cabinet has approved the long-term leasing of 15 state plantation properties to selected local investors, Cabinet Co-Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa said — but he would not say how long the leases run, how much the government expects to raise, or whether the properties will go to government-aligned parties.
The decision was announced at the post-cabinet briefing on Tuesday, 27 October, EconomyNext reported at 2.49 p.m. Colombo time.
What is being leased
The assets belong to three state entities: the Sri Lanka State Plantations Corporation (SLSPC), the Janatha Estates Development Board (JEDB) and Elkaduwa Plantations Company.
The government had earlier sought expressions of interest covering:
- 1,514 hectares of land
- 10 tourist bungalows and scenic locations
- 15 inactive factories
470 investors submitted expressions of interest. Shortlisted applicants were then invited to submit detailed proposals, and the government received 44 proposals covering 50 land and property lots.
“Cabinet approved the proposal to lease 15 selected land and property plots to investors on a long-term basis,” Jayatissa said. The government expects the initiative to attract private investment and improve the utilisation of underused plantation-sector assets.
The questions the minister did not answer
Jayatissa did not respond to reporters’ questions on three points: how long the lease periods are, how much the government hopes to raise through the leasing, and whether the lands and properties will be distributed among parties loyal to the government.
The non-answers are material. Without the lease term or the expected proceeds there is no basis on which to judge the value of the transaction, and the third question goes to how the 15 winners were picked from 44 proposals.
Context
Most lands held by the SLSPC and JEDB originate from the 1972 and 1975 land reform laws, when large privately owned plantations were taken over by the state. Tea, rubber and coconut estates nationalised then were later placed under the state plantation entities now leasing them out.
Not reported
The filing does not name any of the 15 properties, their locations, their sizes, or the investors selected — so it is not possible to say what has been leased or to whom. It does not say how the 15 were chosen from the 50 lots covered by the 44 proposals, what criteria were applied, or who made the selection.
It gives no lease term, no reserve price, no expected revenue, and no conditions attached to the leases — whether investors must employ existing estate workers, maintain the land in cultivation, or invest a minimum amount. It does not say what happens to workers currently on the land, or whether any of the 15 lots are occupied.
Single source. This desk checked the Daily Mirror’s breaking-news listing, the Hiru News homepage rail and the NewsFirst rail directly; no other verified newsroom had filed on this cabinet decision at the time of writing. Ada Derana has returned an HTTP 403 block to this desk for some 48 consecutive days.
