Chief Government Whip and Highways Minister Johnston Fernando saidthat the second phase of the Central Expressway from Meerigama toPothuhera will be vested with the public on November 15. The secondsection of the Central Expressway includes the 39.70 km distance from Mirigama to Kurunegala. Construction of the third section of the Central Expressway has alsocommenced.
Its total length from Pothuhera to Galagedara viaRambukkana is. 31.7 km. This section of the expressway consists of 4interchanges at Pothuhera, Polgahawela, Rambukkana and Galagedara.Speaking to the media at a ceremony to launch a project to plant1,000,000 saplings along the roads countrywide as per the stipulationpledged in the Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour by PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa by planting a sapling at the second phase stretchof the Central Expressway from Meerigama to Pothuhera on Sunday, theminister said:
“Work of the second phase of the Central Expresswayshould have been completed by 19 months back if not for the deliberatedelays caused by the constructor companies commissioned by theYahapalana government which gave the tenders to their cronies.If not for that delay, people would have been using this road for thepast ten months. We had to cancel the contracts that had been given tosuch saboteurs and go before the courts against them. Now we can openthis road on Nov. 15 and vest it with the public.”
The sapling planting ceremony commenced at the Meerigama Intersectionof the Central Expressway. Over 200 saplings of Magul Karanda(Millettia pinnata) and Robarosiya (Tabebuia Rosea) saplings wereplanted along the road at the ceremony.