The completion of a 96-kilometre water transport project in the North Central Province is one of the challenges facing the new Sri Lankan government. It is essential for the local population and will benefit up to 100,000 families. One of the objectives is to promote the potential of the freshwater fishing industry, livestock farming and tourism.
Colombo () – Infrastructure is one of the main challenges facing Sri Lanka’s new president, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, a Marxist-inspired leader at the head of an anti-establishment left-wing coalition. One of the most important is under construction in the North Central Province and is expected to be completed in 2026. It is a 96-km mega irrigation tunnel, the longest in South Asia, which is part of the Maha Ela project to transport water from the Moragahakanda reservoir to Mahakanadarawewa. The project also includes a 27.7-kilometre tunnel between Konduruwawa and Mahameegaswewa, which will cost around 49 billion rupees (just over 145 million euros) and will be a milestone in water supply in the region. In addition, there is the aim of promoting the potential of the freshwater fishing industry, livestock farming and tourism.
The project was launched in the 1970s to improve farmers’ productivity, food security and water supply for domestic and industrial use. However, it had to be suspended due to ethnic conflict, and was later reactivated in 2021. The tunnel is considered the backbone of a 65-kilometre transportation system to divert water from the Moragahakanda and Kalu Ganga reservoirs to Rajarata in the arid northern zone. Since the tunnel route passes through three wildlife sanctuaries and passes within four kilometres of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Sigiriya Rock Fortress, the system will be built underground to protect Sri Lanka’s unique fortress, forest environment and wildlife.
To date, approximately 39% of the work has been completed, but once completed – with the collaboration of China – it will directly and indirectly benefit more than 850,000 families. Irrigation system experts Randesh Weerakoon and Dushmini Herath explain to “Once the tunnel is completed, it will provide drinking water to the areas served by the Mahakanadarawa, Padaviya, Wahalkada and Yan Oya reservoirs.” “In addition, the project will feed 1,505 small reservoirs and supply irrigation water to 3,000 hectares of land.” […]. At the same time, once the project is completed, it will boost the freshwater fishing industry, promote animal husbandry and boost tourism. “The creation of forest reserves will also reduce conflicts between humans and elephants,” the experts conclude.
The Mahaweli Water Security Investment Programme (MWSIP), Sri Lanka’s largest infrastructure development project, is the final phase of the broader Mahaweli Development Programme (MDP). Once completed, it will contribute to the country’s socio-economic development with exceptional investments in the water conveyance of the North Central Province Canal Project (NCPCP). The project will also include social, environmental and economic components, with the construction of new works such as multi-purpose dams, tunnels, canals and associated works. Nutritionists Dilantha Samaraweera and Supuni Kahatapitiya believe that “lack of safe drinking water is one of the main causes of kidney diseases in the inhabitants of the North Central, Northern and Eastern Provinces.” When the project is completed, they explain, “up to 100,000 families in 13 divisional secretariats of the North Central Province will have improved access to safe drinking water.”
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