Among the many tourist attractions:

The Walawe Basin

by Gamini G. Punchihewa

Walawe Basin nestling in the part Ratnapura, Hambantota and Moneragala districts is adorned with many tourist attractions. Among them, the most popular such tourist attractions home and abroad is the Uda Walawe National Park. It is also the closest Park of all the other 15 odd National Parks in our isle.

It being 115 miles from Colombo. Its metropolis is Embilipitiya which has now blossomed into a town, where the sprawling lands are filled with rice fields, industries and multitudes of farming communities.

Host of exotic attractions

Apart from the Uda Walawe National Park, there comes in its wake more exotic attractions of geological endowment. These are the Hot Springs of Mahapelessa about 15 miles away from Embilipitiya and Waulpane Lime Stone cavern about 30 miles away.

The Walawe basin reposes itself in all glory and splendour in ancient Ruhana and Sabaragamuwa civilisation. Such ancient relics of a past hydraulic heritage, Stone Brahmi Inscriptions, ancient Raja Maha Vihras, cave hermitage (Arannes) dating back to the 3rd 2nd country BC and a host of other archaeological treasures abound in every nook and corner of this Walawe Basin.

As a prelude to this series of articles on Walawe's tourism, let me foremost start with the origins leading to the birth of this sprawling Uda Walawe National Park.

The Park's origin

Once a great irrigation tank like this Uda Walawe reservoir by the construction of a dam across the Walawe ganga in 1968, its catchment area and the vast Virgin forest land have to be preserved and conserved in the veritable name of nature for posterity.

Its vast imprisoned waters have to be preserved of its prime environment. So with all those splendid hopes of conserving the reservoir and its catchment area the present Uda Walawe National Park was declared as National Park by a Government Gazette notification on 30.6.1972. The park comprises 119 square miles, including the water surface are, it being 19 square miles.

Before we emerge our further discourse on this fascinating park now teeming with wild animals, particularly the elephant in big concentrations, including a couple of tuskers and a vast assembly of bird species, both native and migrant. Let us pause for a while, and peep into the grim past of the wanton damage caused to its forest cover in doing illicit chena cultivations, finally how the denuded forest cover came to be later resuscitated.

Even before the Park was declared as a National Park, the crying need for land hunger grew in leaps and bounds. As a result of which hordes of people form the locality and distant places squatted on the sprawling virgin forestland. That was the first disastrous turning point that paved its way for the rape of its pristine forest cover.

In its wild melee came the almost decimation of the many species of fauna-avi-fauna, and flora that was once upon a time filled copiously!

In this connection I wrote an article titled 'The Rape Of Park' to the then 'Sun Newspaper' of 29.4.1978 drawing the attention of the Government. Consequently a news item titled "National Park to be cleared of encroachers" in 'Sun' newspaper' of 24.5.1978 briefing that the matter had already received the attention of the Government land had directed the then Director of Wild Life Conservation Department the late Lyn de Alwis to take quick steps to evict the squatters and restore the Park.

Prompt action pursued

Despite the skeleton staff that was attached to administer the park at Uda Walawe, in 1975/76 still they took action under the laws of the country to evict the squatters. During that time the park was headed by a pioneer Warden A. B. Fernando.

After my transfer to the Uda Walawe Project in 1970, when I too in my official capacity as a village officer Lands Officer was closely associated in the past with the veteran park Wardens of the like A. B. Fernando, later with Chiders Jayawardena, for the resurrection of the park.

The River Valleys Development Board in Walawe, when it was administering the Walawe Special Area, its staff attached to the Lands Branch, Embilipitiya, in collaboration with the Wild Life Conservation Department officials attention in the Park Office, Uda Walawe, like A. B. Fernando, then Park Warden of the Walawe Park, and his staff took swift action to serve the quit notices on the encroachers.

At the time, when the rape of the parkland was in full swing, 60 per cent of its forest cover was denuded by the slash and burn methods of doing chenas. I wish to recall being a lover of wild life and a member of the Wild Life and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka for ever 45 years, I also happened to be a frequent visitor to the Park before and after its resurrection, when it was declared as Park.

As I had wandered in every nook and corner of the park in the company of past wardens like A. B. Fernando, the late Mr. Samson, Chiders Jayewardena (one time Warden there), and Mr. Jayaweera along with the key committee officials of the Wild Life and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka, ion the ilk of its former Hony. President Thile Hoffman, Vice President Sam Elapatha (Jnr) then Gen. Secretary Lalith Senanayake, Dr. Ranjan Fernando, then Committee member and a former Hony. President and Mr. Chandra Liyanage.

Visit of world wild life fund member

Once in 1976, when the Park's forest cover had shrunk, at the request of the Wild Life and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka, I had the privilege of accompanying a distinguished member of the World Wild Life Fund, Mr. Vellmar.

Looking at the charred remains of the giant forest trees that once stood there, as mere skeletons of the forest, with a deep sigh of grief and shock, beamed thus: "Oh, its a park without animals and forest cover, he commented brazenly thus "It would take another 25 years for these devastated forests to rejunvivate" Following with it, came another glaring news item in the 'Ceylon Daily News' of 24.7.1975. It had blasted in those dismal words: "What's the use of a Park without animals asked Alice?"

The Park's Resurrection

After the eviction of the squatters on the serving of the quit notices on them, headed by the able pioneer Park Warden, A. B. Fernando and his staff, assisted by the Lands Branch officials attached to the R. V. D. B. Walawe (Embilipitiya), that grand day was bestowed upon the Park, when it was ceremoniously opened to the public on the momentous day of 15.9.1980 in the presence of the Ministry and Wild Life Conservation Department Officials and the Minister concerned.

The evicted encroachers deserving alternative lands were provided to them in the Kiri Ibban area.

Serene Sykvan Purana village

From antiquity there existed two Purana villages in the heart of the parkland. One was Nabada where lived two families, the other purana village was Sinuggala filled with coconut arecanut palms, fruit and giant forest trees. Sinuggala was the only most alluring and prosperous purana village in its whole sylvant solitude.

The then the patriarch villager was 80 years old Malamahamy for his senile decay still robust in health and strong in physique doing even chena work. All of them came down in one generation having migrated from down south in Akuressa about 100 years ago.

They lived in a large mud-walled its roof thatched with illuk grass. There were two other such cozy huts for the other members of their families. His son Mahatuna was there with his children.

Malahamy's one grand daughter was a real smashing beauty the idol of the woodland village. After the Park was restored, they evacuated and found fresh pastures in Hambegamuwa few miles away.

A Park bungalow has been constructed nestles in this empowered sweet little village of Sinuggala.

There is still another Park bungalow constructed in Veheragala close to the banks of the Walawe ganga meandering by lined with giant Kujmbuk trees, while another has been constructed at an enchanting river-rine spot where the flowing Walawe ganga empties its waters to the Uda Walawe reservoir, in Timbirimankade.

"No peeping Toms please"

Off the Park's by-roads, close to Pransagara, there stood a 'Tree Top Hut' constructed on a tall Kone forest tree by the Wild Life staff to enable tourists to watch elephants from this safe perch browsing below with their off spring.

Elephant experts and wild life lovers have averred that the wild elephants did not like to confront any unaccustomed objects lying on their elephant paths. So in that same way of the elephant, this elephant perch fixed on the lofty tree with a ladder placed at its foot had their ire and wrath when they in all anger pulled it down to earth in shambles; So as a warning threat "No Peeping Toms please!"

Tusker the pride of the Parks

This park is endowed with a couple of tuskers which is not only a star attraction but a great heritage to the park itself. Tuskers grace in all their majesty in ambling away in its forested habitat.