Hamilton Canal - a major tourist attraction :

A source of sustainable livelihood

By Shirajiv Sirimane

Sri Lanka will soon add its second highway from Colombo to Katunayake to its expressway network. The island has also signed a deal for its second coal power project.

The Hamilton Canal

Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa inspects the progress of the Hamilton Canal Development Project in the company of Japanese Ambassador Nobuhito Hobo

The fish market near the Hamilton Canal

Work on the canal under way

In addition, two international harbours - in Colombo and Hambantota - enhance the country's maritime map while hydro power and several other mega development projects have got off the ground all over the country, changing its skyline.

On par with this mega development, the city beautification process too is being implemented, also helping reduce flooding in the city.

About three decades ago, Malaysia was starving for investor attention and was lagging behind in this area. The country's then President Mahathir Mohamed, together with international road building companies such as AVIS, started building a highway network which made the country 'smaller' and helped attract a host of international investors, leading to the East Asian country being elevated to the status of a developed nation.

Sri Lanka too seems to have taken a leaf from Malaysia, assigning priority to the development of roads and highways. Railway lines are being extended to the countryside after almost a century while abandoned lines are being re-laid.

Many European countries make use of rivers for transport and pleasure. The Nile is one such route heavily patronised by cruise lines. During the colonial era, the Hamilton Canal was a preferred mode of transport. Sadly, it had remained abandoned for nearly five decades in modern history. However, realising the importance of this canal, the Ministry of Economic Development under the watchful eyes of Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa, restored this historic canal and today it can be easily mistaken for an area in Europe.

While being a major tourist attraction, it has now become a source of sustainable livelihood for many people in the vicinity while an unprecedented number of foreign and local tourists visit the Hamilton Canal since it was developed.

Public use

The newly-developed canal was opened for public use on August 2 after being developed in an environment-friendly manner under Minister Rajapaksa's guidance. Until then, it had remained a highly polluted waterway and a source of ill-health for decades. Today, nearly 8,000 people visit the canal area on weekends and it has become a major attraction for foreign tourists, according to a Western Province Tourism Ministry spokesman.

The Moratuwa University's Town Planning Studies section prepared the Hamilton Canal development plan which was implemented by the Economic Development Ministry. Under the first stage of the plan, eight kilometres from the Negombo Lagoon to the Dandugum Oya river delta was developed.

Under the second stage, a distance of 11 km is scheduled to be developed. A part of the second phase - an extent of three km from Hekiththa on the Kelani River in the Wattala Pradeshiya Sabha area to Elakanda - has already been completed.

The Hamilton Canal project was launched with the objective of developing the Negombo Tourism Zone. In connection with this, steps have been taken to protect the rich biodiversity of the area, thus protecting different species of fish, flora and fauna in and around the canal.

The development of the canal project covers a distance of 22 kilometres, from Ma Oya to the mouth of the Kelani River as a part of a plan drawn up by the Moratuwa University to develop the Negombo tourism region. Under this project, a handrail bridge to Hekiththa and jogging tracks have been built while five bridges have been repaired and renovated. Trees have been planted on either side of the canal, seats have been constructed and 50 solar-powered lamps have been installed on the banks.

Also, a two kilometre extent of the road which runs parallel to the canal has been concreted and the boatman who earlier transported people across the canal has been given a job as watcher of the bridge. The canal has become a source of livelihood for nearly 100 families engaging in small businesses for which the infrastructure has been built.

Japanese assistance

The Sri Lanka Lands Reclamation Corporation and Provincial Road Development Authority carried out the program with Japanese Government assistance.

In 1802, the British started constructing a new canal to the east of the canal which had earlier been built by Sinhalese kings and the Dutch. This was called Hamilton Canal and was meant to link the Dutch Canal by a series of parallel canals designed to drain the Muturajawela basin. However, what happened was the opposite as the high tide brought salinity to the water, not only from the Negombo lagoon, but also from the Kelani river.

In the 15th Century, during the reign of King Vira Parakramabahu VIII, the Negombo lagoon served as the main seaport for trading in cinnamon and other commodities. It is presently called the Dutch Canal and links the Kelani river with the main sea port of Negombo lagoon to the east of Muturajawela.

According to the GCEC environmental profile of the Muturajawela and Negombo Lagoon (March 1991), it was this king who initiated the canal project to facilitate access and transport of goods. The Dutch improved upon it.

The canal in its present form was completed during the early British period in 1802. That year, British Revenue and Commerce Agent Garvin Hamilton started building a new canal (now named Hamilton) to the east of the earlier Dutch Canal to link the latter with a series of parallel canals.

The canal and its vicinity is of much environmental importance since the area is home to different species of fish, birds and plants and is rich in biodiversity, making it ideal for eco-tourism. In view of this, embankments were built to protect the canal banks on either side of the waterway that were beautified.