Parliament heard in March 2025 that Sri Lanka issued 7,897 gem mining permits in 2024, up from 4,665 in 2020. Large-scale mechanized permits also rose, from 180 in 2021 to 434 in 2024.
Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe acknowledged illegal mining in Lunugala, Passara, and Haldummulla, with abandoned pits causing local environmental problems. Licensed miners must post 10,000 rupee deposits and refill pits; NGJA spent 11 million rupees closing abandoned pits in 2024.
No comprehensive environmental impact study on gem mining exists across ministries, a gap MPs flagged directly. The government pledged systematic regulation less vulnerable to political interference.
More permits do not automatically mean more fine sapphire. Alluvial yields are variable and many pits produce included rough. The debate is governance: whether Sri Lanka can scale mining without repeating haphazard pits and river damage.
