Kuruwita Development Plan (2023 - 2033)

It is expected that the process of urban development will result in the mutually integrated sustainable development of the economic, social, physical, and environmental aspects of any urban area designated under Section 3 of the Urban Development Authority Act No. 41 of 1978. As a result, developing a development plan is extremely beneficial and a prime responsibility of the UDA in bringing about a formal and planned development in accordance with the future development potential of the identified area. Under Act No. 41 of 1978, the Urban Development Authority was established as the foremost institution dealing with urban development in Sri Lanka. In order to achieve the objective of sustainable development through urban development in Sri Lanka, the Authority has been assigned the sole power to prepare development plans for each urban area in accordance with the powers given by Section 8A of the said Act. Accordingly, this development plan is prepared based on the needs of the area and it is expected to provide a high standard of living to the residents who will benefit from the vision of the development plan along with the goals, objectives, and tactics. Examining the administrative structure, the Kuruwita town area had functioned as a village council in 1980. Kuruwita was re-established as a sub-office under the District Development Council established under the Development Council Act No. 35 of 1981 and finally established as Kuruwita Pradeshiya Sabha under the Pradeshiya Sabha Act No. 15 of 1987, with effect from January 1, 1988. The city of Kuruwita has been developed as the main service center in this administrative area, and with the aim of taking these development activities towards a regular and sustainable manner, it was declared to cover an area of 39.198 hectares under the Urban Development Authority area by Gazette No. 821/23 dated May 2, 1994. Chapter 01: Background of the Development Plan Introduction 3 By studying the development trend and direction, Kuruwita has been republished with an area of 22.64 square kilometers as per the Special Gazette No. 1629/16 dated November 26, 2009, with the aim of directing the city towards comprehensive development. As a result of the declaration of the Kuruwita Urban Development Area, a number of urban development projects have been implemented under the direction and supervision of the Urban Development Authority, resulting in structural development taking place in the city center area. The preparation of a comprehensive development plan for the Kuruwita Urban Area began in 2019 to meet the pressing needs of the town in line with development goals by 2033. Accordingly, the development plan has focused on improving the physical, environmental, economic, and social welfare in the next decade while taking care of the outstanding urban structure of Kuruwita city. To achieve these goals, development strategies and development guidelines have been introduced.