In February the government appeared to grant more power to the Ministry of Defence, in effect giving it the authority to approve all moves to develop and fill land in the districts of Gampaha, Kalutara and the capital, Colombo. The power will be exercised by a planning committee made up of representatives from the Urban Development Authority (UDA), the Central Environmental Authority, the Department of Agrarian Services and the Sri Lanka Land Reclamation and Development Corporation (SLLRDC). Both the SLLRDC and the UDA are under the control of the defence ministry.

Although centralising authority to develop land in these regions may speed up the process of granting approvals, there are fears that the increasing influence of the defence ministry in the approvals process represents another step towards the concentration of power in the hands of the Rajapakse family. The president is also minister for defence, while his brother, Gotabhaya Rajapakse, is defence secretary.