The writ petition filed by Uruwarige Wannila Aththo, the leader of the indigenous population known as ‘Veddas’, challenging the clearing of the lands at Pollebedda-Rambakenoya was today fixed for support by Court of Appeal.
The Court of Appeal two-judge-bench comprising Justice (President) Arjuna Obeysekera and Justice Mayadunne Corea fixed the petition for support on July 13.
The Mahaweli Development Authority was given further time to present its report including a plan pertaining to the land area cleared for cultivation.
On a previous occasion, the Attorney General informed court that the concerned lands allocated for cultivation belonged to Mahaweli Development Authority.
However, the sixth respondent, the RAN Plantations (Pvt) Ltd had told court that the Company utilised abandoned land which were earlier used for chena cultivation.
Uruwarige Wannila Aththo and Center for Environmental Justice filed this petition seeking an interim order staying the validity of approval granted to Mahaweli Authority for the proposed Agriculture, Livestock Development Project. The petitioners are further seeking an order to halt the clearing of the land at Pollebedda-Rambakenoya, one of the traditional homelands of indigenous population.
Filing this petition through counsel Ravindranath Dabare, the petitioners have named Central Environmental Authority, Mahaweli Development Authority, Department of Forests, Department of Wild Life Conservation, Minister of Wildlife and Forest Conservation, RAN Plantations (Pvt) Ltd and several others as respondents.
The petitioners are also seeking an order in the nature of a Writ of Mandamus directing Central Environmental Authority to take actions in terms of the National Environmental Act for the illegal clearing of the land without conducting an Environmental Assessment.
Petitioners state that Pollebedde is a remote village in the dry zone situated in Mahaoya and is found on the way to Rambakan Oya Reservoir. Pollebedde is one of the traditional homelands of indigenous population known as Veddhas of Sri Lanka.
The petitioners said that deforestation and development have greatly contributed to the shrinking of their traditional lands. This has caused a progressive decline in their number, and the community is at risk of losing its ancient traditions, which have been handed down from generation to generation.
Petitioners states that an area of approximately 500 ha had already been cleared for the Proposed Agricultural and Livestock Development Project at Pollebedda-Rambaken Oya according to the site inspection carried out by the petitioners.
The petitioner states the Central Environmental Authority is the apex body for the protection of the Environment in Sri Lanka and they have failed in their statutory duties to take cognizance of the clearing taking place in the said area and had permitted to proceed with the proposed project without an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) instead of taking actions against the relevant parties for clearing amounting to 500 acres of forest cover in a water catchment area without obtaining the approval in terms of the National Environmental Act.
