Deputy Minister Gunawardena said so while participating in the third reading stage of the budget 2015 under the expenditure heads of the Ministries of Civil Aviation, Highways, Ports and Shipping.
 

He said that President Mahinda Rajapaksa had allocated sufficient funds in the budget 2015 to develop the harbours and airports. “The government is looking to transform Sri Lanka into a strategically important economic centre by converting the country into a naval and maritime hub, an aviation hub. We have constructed expressways and soon the expressways to all four directions would be linked. A large number of employees would be recruited to develop Mattala and Katunayake airports. We must thank the President for allocating around Rs 10 billion for the expenses in the coming year from this budget,” he said.(Special Reporter/HC)