A 290 million rupee financial blow to the electricity sector from the Ministry of Finance.

The National Audit Office reveals that due to the non-payment of electricity bills for the old and new buildings of the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development as scheduled, the Ceylon Electricity Board has had to pay a fine exceeding twenty-three crore sixty lakhs rupees.

According to the audit report, due to such delayed bill payments, a fine of Rs. 1,347,948 has been paid for the year 2024 and Rs. 1,012,479 for the year 2025. During audit observations, these payments were presented under the identified loss category.

Furthermore, the Audit Office points out that there are a significant number of vacancies within the approved staff structure of the Ministry of Finance. Out of 352 approved positions, 40 are vacant, including nine officer-level positions.

Ninety-nine percent of the Ministry's total recurrent expenditure, or Rs. 23,799 crores, has been spent on financial aid payments for the 'Aswesuma' welfare program. The audit report included in the 2025 annual report of the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development also states that despite allocating a large provision for such social security programs, no evaluation has been carried out in collaboration with the relevant ministries regarding the success of income-generating avenues implemented to gradually improve the living standards of low-income earners.