The foundation stone for the Anuradhapura Lower Malwathu Oya Reservoir is to be laid on July 25, at the auspicious time of 10.15 am, by President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, on the invitation of Irrigation Minister P. Harrison.
The firing ground of the Thanthirimale Army Camp during the 30-year civil war is to be the venue for the proposed 169,000 acre-feet reservoir, which would become the largest irrigation scheme in the Anuradhapura District.
The decision was taken at a special meeting held recently at the Anuradhapura District Secretariat, chaired by Anuradhapura Government Agent R.M. Wanninayake. The Lower Malwathu Oya Reservoir Project is expected to completed by 2022.
The water capacity of the proposed reservoir is 169,000 acre-feet and a landscape consisting of both forest and developed land, of around 15,000 acres, would be submerged for the project’s completion. The government has estimated the cost of the reservoir project to be Rs.16 billion.
The reservoir is being built having blocked the Malwathu Oya with a 3.6-kilometre-long dam at the Bogoda village, which is in close proximity to the historic Thanthirimale Rajamaha Viharaya.
The proposed reservoir would cater to irrigate around 35,000 acres coming under Giant’s Tank in the Mannar District, as well as the Akathamarippu and Viyadikulam tanks, during both the Yala and Maha cultivation seasons.
Furthermore, around 3,000 acres in Thantirimale could be cultivated throughout the year with adequate amounts of water being supplied to other rural tanks in the area, which are currently being renovated. According to Anuradhapura Government Agent R.M. Wanninayake, there would also be an irrigation project spanning around 1,300 acres of land in the Mahawilachchiya Divisional Secretariat.
The Malwathu Oya remains the second largest river basin, spanning a 3,246-square-kilomretre area. The major tanks, namely the Mahakanadarawa, tank Nachchaduwa tank, Nuwara Wewa, Tisa Wewa, Pawatkulama tank, and the Akathimurippu tank, are located in the Malwathu Oya river basin.
A number of tanks such as the Eliya Kuda Wewa, Eliya Maha Wewa, Weli Wewa, Puliyankulama tank, Ruwanmaduwa tank, Ransika tank, Thuppitiyawa tank, Upathissagama tank, Kimbul Wewa, Moragaha Wewa, and the Karabakulama tank are going to be submerged under the proposed Lower Malwathu Oya Reservoir Project.
In addition to them, around 30 small villages in the Thanthirimale, Nelumwila, Thuppitiyawa, Asarikgama, Mahaehetuwewa, and Helambawewa Grama Niladhari Divisions, in the Mahawilachchiya and Nuwaragam Palatha Divisional Secretariat Divisions, would be submerged under the reservoir project, Wanninayake added.
It is targetted to complete the reservoir project by the end of 2022 and, parallel to the headwork construction work. Arrangements are also being made to resettle 210 farmer families, who lost their houses to the project, at a new housing scheme which was set up at a cost of Rs.2.5 million per housing unit.
The Irrigation Department said that 3,750 acres of land has been set aside for a new resettlement scheme, and for demarcating alternative muddy lands to the families being evacuated in the Naranwila, Kaluwila, Thanthirimale, Dematamalgama, Muthalikulama and Hinguruthenna areas.
Highlighting irrigation technological aspects, Lower Malwathu Oya Reservoir Project Director Eng. T.P. Alwis said the spill of the reservoir would consist of 10 gates, each having an area of 575 square feet (25’ x 23’), and that the maximum water discharge per 1,000 acres would be 109,635 cubic feet per second. Furthermore, the maximum quantity of water which could be received is 124,937 cubic feet per second.
The reservoir’s left and the right bank sluices would release water at a speed of 35 cubic feet per second. The volume of water being ejected from the river outlet in the left bank is 636 cubic feet per second. Apart from this; for the generation of electricity, on the basis of 468 Gigawatt-hours per year; a volume of 7.5 cubic metres of water would be discharged per second.
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