Sri Lankan government building homes for poor in Colombo

As part of a massive development program in Colombo, the Sri Lankan government is planning to begin building more homes for low income families this year and improve 22 cities countrywide, an official said here Monday.The government has already partially completed 13,285 houses but needs to build an estimated 75,000 in total to house most of the low income families in the capital, Defence Ministry Spokesman Lakshman Hulugalla told media.The funding for the facelift is coming from several companies as well as a 213 million U.S. dollar from the World Bank, which will be used for infrastructure development.However, the displacement of thousands of families has caused consternation among many with a case being filed at the Supreme Court against some of the removals.Residents charge that the government is not providing sufficient compensation and interim housing facilities to hundreds of families. Moreover, the removal of shops is also hampering livelihoods.The most vociferous are 455 families that are residents in Slave Island that are being moved out by the government to make way for a 405 million U.S. dollar project by Indian company TATA.TATA has agreed to build apartments for the displaced residents but these will not be completed for at least another year. Hulugalla insists that the measures are adequate. "There is an allegation from the opposition that we are evacuating people from the Colombo municipality area, to other areas, like outside Colombo. There is no truth in it. All those people will be settled down in Colombo. Already we have started building 17,000 houses, up to now 13,285 houses we have come into the final stages, and there are several other companies that have come into agreements with the Urban Development Authority to build more houses,"he said.Dutch buildings that are more than a century old are also being revamped and leased out to be used as upscale department stores and restaurants.