After receiving numerous complaints, the government has ordered a full inquiry and a report submitted urgently, as continuing blackouts are a threat to national security and the economy.

Sources in the prime minister’s office say the complaints received note power failures had taken place whenever a decision was to be taken with regard to the CEB.

One case in point is the island wide blackout a day after minister Ravi Karunanayake proposed in September to partition the CEB into six units.

Another is the power failure affecting the entire country a few days after minister Sarath Amunugama held talks to handover 50 per cent of shares of the Norochcholai power plant to China.

A group of CEB engineers, who remain impartial, has complained to the PM in March about a link between the power outages and the electricity mafia.

The high expenses at the institutions cannot be avoided due to the involvement of this mafia, blamed on weak administrative decisions taken during the previous regime.

The national movement for the protection of consumer rights as well as minister Patali Champika Ranawaka have also claimed the existence of a mafia in the CEB.