President opens Tangalle Water Scheme

The Rs. 1.07 billion Water Supply Scheme commissioned by President Mahinda Rajapaksa today will triple the access of safe drinking water supply for those living in this area.

Constructed in 18 months, the Tangalle Water Supply Scheme is a collaboration of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) for the provision of a sustainable supply of safe drinking water to tsunami affected families.

The Tangalle project will see the supply of water swell from a current 2,500 cubic metres per day to 9,000 cubic metres. The project, funded by UNICEF, will play a critical role in safeguarding the health of the region's children, contributing to the reduction of diarrhoea, hepatitis and other water related diseases, while ensuring that local residents, especially women and children, don't spend hours daily looking for safe water.

"Today, through a tremendous collective effort between Government and UNICEF, we give hope and health to so many women and children who would otherwise trudge great distances to fetch water, and to the children who will no longer suffer from water-related diseases," UNICEF's Representative in Sri Lanka, Philippe Duamelle said.

The main components of the new project include:

The laying of 42 kilometres of pipeline for transmission and distribution.

The rehabilitation of existing treatment plants and construction of a new treatment plant at Nalagama.

Ensuring the extension of the existing water supply to Nalagama, Palapotha, Beliatta and Hathbodiya areas. Construction of four new reservoirs at Palapotha, Hathbodiya, Nalagama, Tangalle town and Beliatta.