Vehicle imports have resumed after five years, Nalin Hewage says, claiming the government stabilized the economy and delivered relief.
Vehicle imports have restarted after nearly five years, with Deputy Minister Nalin Hewage saying the government has made the people’s dream of owning vehicles a reality.
Speaking at a ceremony, Hewage said the government had stabilized the country’s economy within the short period of the past one and a half years.
He stated that vehicle imports, which had remained suspended for around five years, have now resumed, and that US$ 2 billion worth of vehicles were imported during the last year alone.
The Deputy Minister emphasized that this had been achieved at a time when Sri Lanka had been discredited as a bankrupt nation.
He said the government had also managed to pay the US$ 5.1 billion loan installment due for 2025, while continuing to provide several relief measures to the people.
Hewage stated that steps had been taken to increase the salaries of more than 130,000 public servants for three consecutive years.
Under that programme, he said Rs. 220 billion had already been allocated for salaries in two stages.
He added that the private sector minimum wage had been increased from Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 3,000, while the daily wage of plantation workers had been raised from Rs. 1,350 to Rs. 1,750.
In addition to providing books and clothing for schoolchildren, the government had also taken steps to provide an allowance of Rs. 6,500, he said.
The Deputy Minister further stated that the Mahapola scholarship for university students had been doubled from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 10,000.
He said the number of Aswasuma beneficiaries had been increased to 200,000.
Hewage also noted that the elderly allowance had been raised from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 5,000, while the disability allowance had been increased to Rs. 25,000.
The Deputy Minister said the government had taken steps to change the wrong political culture that had contributed to the destruction of the economy.
He pointed to measures such as appointing a small scientific Cabinet, refusing parliamentary pensions, and reducing medical insurance fees as examples set by the government.
Hewage further stated that despite the Middle East war, natural disasters, and global economic challenges, the government remains committed to ending the era of queues in the country and resolving public problems.
