The Army grounds adjoining the Galle Face Green will be the site for an upmarket luxury hotel and apartment complex, the Cabinet has decided. The project costing 75 million US dollars (Rs 8.3 billion) will be awarded to the internationally reputed Shangri-La group. A recommendation to provide this key site for development was made to the Cabinet by Economic Development Minister, Basil Rajapaksa.

The Government and the travel trade are locked in a battle over the decision to scrap on arrival visas for foreign visitors to Sri Lanka. Immigration and Emigration Controller of Chulananda Perera told the Sunday Times yesterday the facility afforded to visitors from 83 countries would be scrapped.