Government pays 70% of LKR 50,000 allowance to disaster-affected families
97% Progress Recorded in Disbursement of LKR. 25,000 Relief Grant. 73% Progress in Distribution of Assistance to Schoolchildren
200,000 Grant Introduced to Support Recovery of Small and Medium-Scale Entrepreneurs
The government is successfully disbursing relief funds to families affected by cyclone Ditwah in a well-managed manner, supporting both their resettlement and the restoration of their livelihoods.
Accordingly, 70 per cent of the LKR.50,000 allowance provided by the government to assist families in purchasing essential household and kitchen equipment for resettlement following cyclone Ditwah has already been paid.
A total of 156,805 families across 25 districts were identified as eligible to receive this allowance, of which payments have already been completed for 109,512 families.
In the Nuwara Eliya District, all 1,191 eligible families have received the allowance in full. In the Matale District, 1,143 out of 1,253 eligible families have been paid, reflecting a progress rate of 91 per cent. Meanwhile, in the Kandy District, payments have been made to 7,083 out of 8,409 eligible families, achieving a progress rate of 84 per cent.
Payments of the LKR.50,000 allowance have been fully completed for all eligible families identified in the districts of Galle, Matara, Hambantota, Jaffna, Vavuniya, Kilinochchi, Ampara, Badulla and Monaragala.
In the Mannar District, the disbursement of the LKR. 50,000 allowance has reached 98 per cent, while 99 per cent of eligible beneficiaries in the Mullaitivu District have already received the payment. Payment progress has reached 91 per cent in the Kurunegala District, 91 per cent in the Anuradhapura District, 84 per cent in the Ratnapura District, and 93 per cent in the Kegalle District.
Meanwhile, the overall progress of disbursing the LKR. 25,000 allowance provided by the government for post-disaster house cleaning and sanitation has reached 97 per cent.
A total of 435,104 families across all 25 districts were identified as eligible for this allowance, of which payments have been fully completed for 422,900 families to date.
Accordingly, the LKR. 25,000 allowance has been fully disbursed to all eligible families in the Kalutara, Nuwara Eliya, Galle, Hambantota, Kilinochchi, Ampara, Badulla and Moneragala districts.
The disbursement of the LKR 25,000 allowance has reached 99 per cent in the Kandy District. Progress stands at 95 per cent in the Matale District, 88 per cent in the Jaffna District, 94 per cent in the Mannar District, 99 per cent in the Vavuniya District, 98 per cent in the Mullaitivu District, 98 per cent in the Batticaloa District and 98 per cent in the Trincomalee District. In addition, payments have been completed for 98 per cent of eligible beneficiaries in the Kurunegala and Anuradhapura districts, 97 per cent in the Puttalam and Polonnaruwa districts, 99 per cent in the Ratnapura District and 90 per cent in the Kegalle District.
Meanwhile, the LKR. 15,000 allowance provided by the government for school students from families affected by the disaster has been fully disbursed to 73 per cent of the targeted beneficiaries. In addition, the LKR. 10,000 allowance from the President’s Fund is currently being distributed.
A total of 186,893 students across all 25 districts of the country were identified as eligible for the LKR. 15,000 allowance and payments have already been completed for 136,994 students.
The government is taking swift measures to ensure that the remaining allowances are distributed promptly, with state machinery strengthened to facilitate the process.
Furthermore, under the Ministry of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, information regarding 6,370 registered business owners affected by cyclone ‘Ditwah’ is currently being verified. For the one-time allowance of LKR. 200,000, funds amounting to LKR. 1,006,800,000 have been allocated by the Ministry to the District Secretariat offices to facilitate payments to 5,034 eligible applicants.
Under the ‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ programme, the Project 5M initiative for providing compensation and constructing new houses for completely damaged homes was launched on January 9, under the leadership of the President, starting in Anuradhapura and Kurunegala districts.
Under the first phase of the housing reconstruction programmeme for those who lost their homes due to cyclone ‘Ditwah’ new houses are being constructed for families whose homes were completely destroyed and can be rebuilt at the same location, with an allocated cost of LKR. 5 million per house.
In addition, the government has initiated efforts to identify suitable land for families whose original homes were deemed unsafe for reconstruction, ensuring they are provided with new housing.
Meanwhile, as part of the nationwide “A Place to Belong – A Better Life” National Housing Programmeme 2026, the construction of 31,218 new houses across the country, including 2,500 homes for families displaced by the war in the Northern and Eastern provinces, was launched recently in Jaffna under the leadership of the President.
The disbursement of relief funds to farmers for crop damage is currently being carried out efficiently, while accurate data on destroyed livestock farms is being collected to determine the appropriate compensation amounts.
The President has consistently emphasized the need to restore the livelihoods of affected communities to a standard higher than their pre-disaster conditions. In line with this directive, the government is successfully implementing a well-planned and managed programmeme to provide the largest ever relief payouts in the country’s history following a natural disaster.
