Lanka appoints committee to review Chinese port city project

Sri Lanka today appointed an apex committee to look into the 'omissions and commissions' in the controversial USD 1.4 billion Chinese port city project here which was approved by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe appointed the committee consist of top civil servants from his office, ministries of ports, urban development, environment and the Attorney General's Department.
The committee would look to correct several omissions and commissions in the project, Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne said.
The USD 1.4 billion port city project was a major initiative of former President Rajapaksa's regime.
The project came in for criticism from the then opposition coalition of the current President Maithripala Sirisena.

Sirisena, who won the elections in January by defeating Rajapaksa, suspended the work on the project in March.
China had conveyed its concerns to the Lankan government over the suspension of the project.
Sri Lankan environmental groups have pointed to serious coastal erosion from the project due to reclaiming of the sea to build the city adjacent to Colombo port.