Feb 10, Colombo: President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa made a sudden inspection visit to the Welikada Prison in Colombo this afternoon.

During the visit, the President engaged in talking to the detainees who were walking outdoors and asked about their well-being. Many among them were imprisoned for drug use.

The inmates told the President the prison is overcrowded and has three times more inmates than its capacity.

The detainees told the President that because of filing cases based on false information, the trials of those cases take a long time and as a result, they have to languish in prison for a long time.

The President said a committee would be appointed to look into the situation.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has earlier made sudden inspection visits to the Motor Traffic Department, Bandaranaike International Airport and to the Colombo national Hospital.