G.K. Udeni Janaka Perera vs. Central Environmental Authority and others – CA WRIT/337/15-2021

In the case between G.K. Udeni Janaka Perera (Petitioner) and Central Environmental Authority with others (Respondents), the court addressed the lawfulness of issuing an Environmental Protection Licence (EPL) to the 4th Respondent for the operation of a bus repair garage within a residential zone. It was held that the EPL issuance was unlawful, as the garage’s continuous operation prior to the enactment of the 2008-2020 Development Plan for Maharagama was not established through sufficient or timely evidence. The Development Plan, bearing the force of law, precluded such non-conforming industrial activity in a residential zone unless such use was ongoing before the zoning plan took effect. The decision reaffirmed that regulatory authorities are bound by statutory and zoning requirements un