South Asia's tallest - Lotus Tower - Open from Today (15)

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Lotus Tower in Colombo, the tallest in South Asia, will be opened to the public today (15).

The 350-metre (1,155-feet) Lotus Tower, green and purple in colour, visible from all over Sri Lanka's capital Colombo and on Thursday (15), the first phase of the opening will take place.

The Colombo Lotus Tower Management Company (Pvt) Limited says the tower will be open to the public from 2.00 PM to 10.00 PM on weekdays and from 12.00 PM to 10.00 PM on weekends. 

Tickets will be priced at Rs. 2000 and Rs. 500 to enter the tower.

Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Lotus Tower Management Company Major General (Rtd.) Prasad Samarasinghe told News 1st that the tower will also be open for school students at a special rate of Rs. 200 from the 1st of October. 

The second stage of the Lotus Tower will be declared open in another 2 months and will include the opening of e-sports centers, a digital museum, etc.

The third stage of the tower, set to be ready by March next year, will include the opening of a 9D cinema and the revolving restaurant.

The 350-metre (1,155-feet) Lotus Tower has been built at an estimated $113 million.

Here are 10 interesting facts related to Lotus Tower:

1) In South Asia, the tower is touted as the tallest self-supported structure.
2) It is the 11th tallest tower in Asia.
3) Lotus Tower is the 19th tallest tower in the world.
4) It was first proposed to be built in the suburb of Peliyagoda. However, later the Government of Sri Lanka decided to change the location.
5) The tower will be used for communication, observation, and other leisure facilities.
6) Construction is estimated to have cost USD 113 million.
7) Since construction began in 2012 (under former president Mahinda Rajapaksa), it has been plagued by corruption claims.
8) The design of the building is inspired by the Lotus flower.
9) Tourism and antenna leasing, will be the main sources of revenue for the Lotus Tower. The Lotus Tower will function as a radio and TV broadcasting antenna ISDB-T and a proposed DVB-T2 support structure for 50 television services. It will also provide services to 35 FM Radio Stations and 20 telecommunication service providers.
10) It has four entrances. However, two out of the four will be used as VIP entrances. The Lotus Tower’s podium consists of 6 floors, and landscaping is planned in the form of a large water park.

In 2019, then-President Maithripala Sirisena made allegation of corruption at the inauguration on of the 356-meter Lotus Tower, which overlooks Beira Lake in Colombo, sparking a political row in the country, which has relied heavily on China for project finance.

Sirisena alleged that Aerospace Long-March International Trade Co (ALIT) had vanished, misappropriating some 2 billion rupees ($11 million) deposited with it by Sri Lanka’s state-run Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (TRC).

Sirisena’s predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was in power when the alleged incident took place in 2012, said in a statement that China National Electronics Corporation and ALIT had been nominated by the Chinese government.

He said the active party in the contract had always been the China National Electronics Corporation and not ALIT.