For agricultural communities living in the North Central Province, twin reservoirs drawing water from the Kalu Ganga will be a lifeline for cultivation and a means to escape
livelihood and income loss from drought conditions that have plagued rice farmers over several paddy seasons
Marking a major milestone in the Moragahakanda-Kalu Ganga mega development project, President Maithripala Sirisena launched the water- filling process of the twin reservoir from Kalu Ganga last week.
The Moragahakanda-Kalu Ganga project is the fourth largest irrigation project in the country which is six times larger than the ancient irrigation wonder, the Parakrama Samudraya. This giant irrigation project, that comes under the Mahaweli Multi-Purpose Plan was delayed for various reasons since the 1950s, under successive governments.
The Moragahakanda - Kalu Ganga project is developed using international aid and local funds. China Development Bank, the Governments of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and OPEC funded the project while Chinese owned Sinohydro was the main contractor.
Under the first phase, the Upper Elahera canal, North Western canal and Minipe anicut rehabilitation will be initiated and a nine kilometre canal will be built channelling water from the Kalu Ganga reservoir to the Moragahakanda reservoir.
The 94 km long Upper Elahera canal, channelling water from Moragahakanda to Mahakanadarawa in the Anuradhapura district is now under construction. It is considered to be the longest water tunnel in Asia, channelling 26 kms underground. Once the canal is completed, people in the Kekirawa, Dambulla, Hingurakgoda, Elahera, Galenbindunwewa and Palugaswewa in the Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Matale districts will benefit, with a steady water supply for cultivation and other livelihoods.
According to Hemantha Jayasinghe, Residential Project Manager of the project, Moragahakanda-Kalu Ganga will ensure a 100 % supply of irrigation water in both Yala and Maha paddy cultivation seasons.
“In the last few years we faced severe drought in the Rajarata area. If we had completed this reservoir by 2012 as previously planned, those difficulties could have been avoided,” he said.
The total water capacity of both reservoirs is 818 million cubic metres (Moragahakanda 570M cubic metres and Kalu Ganga 248 million cubic metres). This giant water body beds on 24 Grama Niladhari Wasams (Village units) belonging to Naula and Laggala divisions. Some 3,000 families who resided in those areas have vacated their lands and are now resettled in new lands provided in Guruwela, Thorapitiya, Ma Oya and Wellawela.
The Government paid compensation to the relocated communities based on the value estimation of their property. In addition, each family received 1.5 acres of paddy land and half an acre of dry land (uncultivated) to construct a house. If these families prefer not to resettle in the areas allocated, the Government has decided to pay them the values of the compensated lands as well. The compensation package offered by the Government is tailored to the individual needs of those who will be displaced by the Moragahakanda project, Jayasinghe explained.
“If someone wants to keep their dry land only, it is possible and we pay off the value of 1.5 acre paddy land” Jayasinghe pointed out. Other than providing lands, all families are granted agricultural tool packs, seeds for cultivation, a further Rs 50,000 for a temporary house and a continuous dry ration provision, he added.
For a family of five, the value of this dry ration is around Rs 10,000. “This amount has been continuously provided because many of these people have not yet started agricultural activities”, said Jayasinghe. Once the Kalu Ganga reservoir is complete, water for agriculture will be freely available. Until then, the Mahaweli Authority will provide drinking water to the community through bowsers every other day. Large water are fixed stand in front of each house in the resettled area. In Ma Oya, an area where families displaced by the Moragahakanda reservoir were resettled, roads are still being built and the place is almost completely devoid of tree cover, making conditions hot and humid.
Abeysingha Banda (53) who used to live in Elagamuwa in Naula shared his views on the resettlement process, saying, before he was relocated his family held 1.5 acres of dry land and a paddy field of 1.25 acres. “In our resettled area we have only half an acre of dry land and 1.5 acres of paddy land. Apart from that we received Rs 2 million as compensation and another Rs 1 million was paid later.” Banda is unhappy about the climate in his family’s resettled area, particularly the lack of foliage.
“We had 23 jak trees and 22 mango trees in our previous homestead. Here it’s almost a desert. They could have begun work in Kalu Ganga first, so we could receive water from the beginning”.
But others are quite happy with the relocation project. Wasana (30), a young woman says, her family did not own cultivable land where they used to live. “We had no paddy fields in Naula. Therefore, the resettlement has turned out to be a great boon for us. Water is our only requirement now”.
Relocated residents who were engaged in trade rather than agriculture have found the move difficult.
“I had a small retail business inNaula, which was doing well. Here it is very slow” said Wimalawathi (54), a retail boutique owner in the Ma Oya village No 02.
On the way from Thorapitiya to the Old Laggala town we met Gamini who runs a small hotel in front of the New Laggala police station.
“Now it’s been eight months since we moved to the new town. Business is still slow. I could easily sell 200 units of short-eats those days. Now I struggle to sell that number even in a month. But once the resettlement is complete, things could turn better,” he says hopefully. Gamini is hoping the Government will give loans to those who were relocated, to develop their businesses. The newly built Laggala town was a hive of activity. Central College, Laggala built in the New Laggala town was busy with schoolchildren rushing out of the school gate after the final bell. Some were waiting for buses and some were on the road, savouring fruit-flavoured ice packets. Dogs dodged the fast moving vehicles in the newly carpeted road between Dambulla and Mahiyanganaya.
Wijesuriya (43) resettled in Thorapitiya is quite happy about the current facilities. “I was running a van hire business back in Laggala. I do the same here. Business is okay and we got a decent compensation too. If we get water soon, our lives should be fine.”
According to Wijesuriya some families had unfortunately failed to manage the money they got as compensation, effectively. “It’s a weakness with people. They don’t know how to spend their money when they receive Rs 4 or 5 million. But many who didn’t have much land or had no agricultural lands in Laggala became rich by the resettlement” he said.
Not all relocated residents are happy however. Suraweera (56) a retired soldier is not happy about the compensation scheme. He was removing the bricks from his old retail shop in front of the house in the old Laggala town, when we met him.
“Everyone was ready to give up everything they built for decades for the development of the country. That’s no issue. What we ask is a fair compensation. That’s all” he says.
According to Suraweera, his completed house, shop, well and 60 perch land has been valued at Rs 3.5 million. The neighbouring house with fewer amenities was valued at Rs 5.6 million. Now, Suraweera has gone to courts seeking justice.
“At the court I got to know that my land had been valued at Rs 2,500 a perch. This is nonsense” he complains. Suraweera says, there should have been a proper mechanism for compensation for those who were relocated. Refusing to go after politicians to get a fair compensation, the retired soldier chose the courts, instead.
In the first phases of development, the Moragahakanda-Kalu Ganga Development Project will facilitate agriculture and provide drinking water to the dry zone areas of the North Central Province.
In its final phase, the project would serve to meet the long-standing water needs in the war-affected Northern Province when surplus water in the Mahaweli Basin will be transferred to the Chenmadukulam Tank in the Kanagarayan Kulam basin.
[A sincere thank you to P.G. Dayananda - Public Relations Officer, Moragahakanda Development Project, who was helpful in introducing us to the relevant officers in the field.]