Deputy Minister of Transport and Highways, Dr.
Prasanna Gunasena, has clarified that reports recommending the building deal with the Ruwanpura Expressway has been abandoned are entirely false.He described that the building and construction work has actually just been temporarily suspended.Dr.
Gunasena further verified that the government has decided not to proceed with the building of the expressway this year, as no monetary allotment has actually been made for it in the existing budget.The Ruwanpura Expressway, at first planned to cover from Kahathuduwa to Ratnapura through Horana and Ingiriya, has actually been put on hold.The Deputy Minister explained that this choice was made as the present government is prioritizing other advancement jobs based upon a set priority list.As part of this prioritization, the federal government plans to start building on the Kurunegala-Galagedara area of the Central Expressway.The construction will be performed in 2 phases: the Pothuhera-Rambukkana section and the Rambukkana-Galagedara section.Dr.
Gunasena mentioned that the Pothuhera-Rambukkana section is expected to be finished by next year, while the Rambukkana-Galagedara section is prepared for to be completed within 3 years.In addition, the long-delayed Kadawatha-Mirigama section is now set to proceed with assistance from China.A group of representatives from the Export-Import Bank of China (EXIM) is anticipated to go to Sri Lanka to observe the continuous building and construction work.Dr.
Gunasena also exposed that an area of the Kadawatha-Mirigama roadway, which collapsed during advancement work, is presently under repair work at a cost of Rs.
7 billion.