In the wake of Sri Pada/Adam's Peak Chief Incumbent (Sri Padasthanadhipathi) Ven. Bengamuwe Dhammadinna Thera refusing to pay electricity bills for street lamps on three roads leading to it (Sri Pada), the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) – while emphasising that everyone should pay the related charges for using electricity – stated that the relevant regional unit of the CEB would take necessary action if the relevant bills were not paid.

A meeting to discuss the upcoming Sri Pada pilgrimage season was held at the Ratnapura District Secretariat on Tuesday (24) under the patronage of Dhammadinna Thera, and representatives from all related institutions, such as the Ratnapura Divisional and District Secretariats. The Police, too, attended the meeting.

Speaking during the meeting, an official of the CEB Office in Ratnapura said that the Presidential Secretariat had informed them that electricity bills related to the last Sri Pada pilgrimage season would be paid, and that there was therefore no issue in relation to the relevant bills. He also requested that such a communication with regard to electricity bills during the upcoming pilgrimage season also be made under the guidance of Dhammadinna Thera.

During the conversation, the CEB official happened to mention that the Presidential Secretariat had settled Sri Pada's electricity bills  for last year (2022), to which Dhammadinna Thera, in response, said that he, being the Chief Incumbent of Sri Pada, had not made any payment. "I am not bound to pay, and I will not pay either. This is not an electricity supply that we have asked for. The then Head of State (probably a reference to a former President) promised that electricity would be supplied to Sri Pada as long as the latter, the Laxapana hydroelectric power station, and the CEB exist. Other than that, no chief incumbent or any other contributor is bound to pay, nor have they made any payment."

Questioning the CEB official as to whether the CEB would charge for street lamps on highways, he said that the three roads leading to Sri Pada were also roads used by the general public. "Does the Government charge for street lamps on roads? If yes, from whom? These are also three roads used by the general public. You (CEB) should rethink this matter and act. If it cannot be done, let the roads be lightless. I will work to bring a generator and supply electricity to the upper part (top of the Sri Pada mountain). There is one even at present. Therefore, don’t come asking for money saying that electricity was supplied to roads, as no payments will be made," Dhammadinna Thera said.

When contacted by The Daily Morning yesterday (25), CEB Chairman Nalinda Illangakoon said that, according to his knowledge, there was no special treatment to any party with regard to payments for electricity. "It is to treat everyone equally that the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has informed us. That is the system currently in place. No one gets electricity free of charge, and everyone should pay a price for it. There are no changes in it for certain places," he said. When queried as to whether the street lamps on roads leading to Sri Pada would be disconnected if the relevant bills were not paid, he said: "It is something in the hands of the relevant regional unit. They will take the necessary steps."

Sri Pada is revered as a sacred site by Buddhists, Hindus, and some Muslims and Christians. It has specific qualities that cause it to stand out and be noticed, including its dominant and outstanding profile, and the boulder at the peak containing an indentation resembling a footprint, which is mostly believed to be that of the Buddha. The Sri Pada pilgrimage season begins on Unduvap Full Moon Poya Day in December each year, and marks its end on Vesak Full Moon Poya Day in May the next year.