Nuwara Eliya stadium plan faces public anger as residents allege housing works, political links, and pollution threats near Gregory Lake.
Nuwara Eliya stadium project has come under heavy public fire, with residents and civil organisations accusing the government of using an international sports dream to mislead people while the existing public playground is being destroyed.
Strong opposition has emerged from residents of Nuwara Eliya, municipal councillors, and civic groups, who claim the government’s proposal to transform the Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council Racecourse into a high-altitude international sports training centre is little more than a development slogan.
At the recent opening ceremony of the National Sports Festival, Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Sunil Gamage said the current government was working to convert the Racecourse into an international-level sports training facility. However, members of the Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council, the Nuwara Eliya Saving Organization, and local residents have strongly criticised the statement, pointing out that an informal housing complex is already being built in the middle of the same playground.
Houses Rise Inside Proposed Sports Venue
Even as the Sports Minister speaks of an international stadium, a row of so-called “temporary” houses is being constructed inside the playground, reportedly for disaster-affected families.
Nuwara Eliya Municipal Councillor Thilini Wickramasinghe said the decision to build houses in the middle of a sports ground with international value exposes the shortsightedness of the authorities. She pointed out that the Municipal Council had already approved and allocated a suitable alternative land for housing disaster victims.
Residents allege that although the new houses are being described as temporary, they are being built using cement and stone, giving them the appearance of permanent structures. Based on past experience in Nuwara Eliya, they warn that such temporary buildings often later become permanent slum settlements.
Political Influence Alleged Behind Project
Serious allegations have also been raised over possible political favouritism behind the controversial construction project.
In his speech, Sports Minister Sunil Gamage mentioned that the proposed development had the support of Deputy Minister of Education Madura Seneviratne. However, the most controversial concern raised by residents is that official approval to allocate the stadium land for the informal construction was granted by the current Additional District Secretary for Lands in Nuwara Eliya, who is the wife of the Deputy Minister himself.
Residents and civil organisations say this raises serious questions about transparency, accountability, and the use of public land in one of the country’s most valuable hill-country locations.
Gregory Lake Faces Pollution Fears
Environmental concerns have also deepened, with residents warning that the sewage system for the new houses has not been constructed according to accepted standards.
They fear that Gregory Lake, one of Nuwara Eliya’s main tourist attractions, could face severe pollution if waste from the housing site enters the lake. Environmentalists warn that local and foreign tourists who visit Nuwara Eliya for fresh air, natural beauty, and relaxation may one day be forced to go boating on a lake contaminated with sewage and waste.
It was also revealed that previous governments had repeatedly announced plans to develop the same stadium, with foundation stones laid on several occasions. However, residents say the latest controversy has now placed a serious question mark over whether the international sports stadium dream is genuine development or another politically driven promise made at the cost of public land and the environment.
