Minister of Urban Development and Sacred Area Development Dinesh Gunawardena recently inspected the new multi-storeyed housing complex constructed at Dematagoda to provide homes for the displaced shanty dwellers from the Slave Island area.

Under the first stage of this housing project, it is planned to provide housing for the shanty-dwellers who were displaced by the Slave Island and Beira Lake development project, who have obtained temporary accommodation at Grandpass under the auspices of the Urban Development Authority of the Ministry of Urban Development and Sacred Area Development.

The area allocated for the housing complex is 3.6 hectare (9 acre) at Dematagoda. Each house has 50 square metres (500 sq. ft) comprising two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen and a bathroom. This programme to construct 1,000 dwellings was inaugurated by the Urban Development Authority. It is implemented in 3 stages, with 320 dwellings being constructed at present in the first stage. They are due to be handed over to the new owners in the near future.

New technology is being utilised to construct the houses in this project and it is the first time that this technology has been used in the public sector. It is known as the MIVAN form work system, brought to this country from Malaysia.

Minister Dinesh Gunawardena said the Ministry of Urban Development and Sacred Area Development was able begin construction of this housing complex, in accordance with Mahinda Chintana goal of providing every family, a home.

"The people living in Grandpasss temporarily will be able to own permanent homes. We are now working to provide housing for the people on a policy different from that of the previous governments, according to which the opportunities for selling the new houses and going back to shanties will be minimised. It is the wish of the Government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa to provide new houses for the masses by completing this housing complex quickly and to ensure a bright future for all the families," he said.