Padaviya farmers appeal for redress through Moragahakanda
 

Anura Maitipe reporting from Padaviya

The total capacity of the twin reservoirs of Moragahakanda is 8,355 million cubic meters and will cover the land area of 3,790 hectares. With the completion of this project over 1,000 hectares in the North Central province will be irrigated while providing irrigation facilities for 149,942 acres of land in North Central, North and North Eastern provinces.

But the dream of late Minister of Power and Irrigation Maithripala Senanayake who had planned this project long ago to irrigate the arid lands of Padaviya, Welioya, Medawachchiya and Kebitigollawa but has not been materialised with the newly implemented Moragahakanda plan.

Padaviya colony is situated in the northern part of Anuradhapura district in the middle of Vavuniya, Mullaithivu and Trincomalee districts. According to the Central Bank Report in 2005 Padaviya was the most poverty stricken Divisional Secretariat in the North Central Province.

This resulted due to lack of irrigation facilities, where the farmers in the area solely depend upon rain water for their cultivations. Sometimes it doesn't work due to lack of sufficient rains.

According to the Mahaweli Authority the first feasibility study of Moraghakanda project had been conducted by a Canadian company (Huntishen) in 1962. But later some alterations were made and was amended over six times. In the original plan they were to construct an artificial concrete canal from Moragahakanda tank via Kalawewa, Huruluwewa, Mankattiya and Mahakandarawa to Padaviya.

But in the new plan there was no provision for extension of the North Central canal beyond Mahakandarawa towards Medawachchiya. This has caused great inconvenience to the farming community in Padaviya, Medawachchiya, Welioya and Kebitigollawa. The people were promised by all successive governments to provide irrigation facilities under the Moragahakanda reservoir.

The Ragjmaha Viharadipathi Padviya Sripura, Sridamma Thera said, "In the North Central region the most arid areas were Medawachchiya, Padaviya, Horwo pathana, Kebithigollawa and Welioya. The main objective of late Minister Senanayake was to provide irrigation facilities for the farmers in these areas out of the Moraghakanda Project. But under the ongoing project these areas will not cover those areas.

"Despite constant threats from the LTTE terrorists and with severe drought conditions our people do not leave these areas. They lived with all these hardships with great expectations. But under the ongoing project most drought stricken areas in the region have not been covered", the Thera added.

The Chairman, Farmers Organisation in Rajarata, R. Ukkubanda said, although there were heavy rains in other part of the country during the monsoonal rains, they had received only a short spell throughout the past 50 years.

As a result out of 17,000 acres of paddy land only 6,000 acres of land were cultivated annually in Maha season.

Over 150,000 living in this area and 95 percent of them are farmers. In one voice, they urge President Mahinda Rajapaksa to intervene in this matter to provide them with irrigation facilities Moragahakanda reservoir, he urged.

The North Central Provincial Council Chairman K. H. Nandasena said, the main objective of this project was to provide irrigation facilities to Medawachchiya, Padaviya, Kebitigollawa and Welioya colonies. People live in these areas with no proper drinking water. So it is the duty of the government that they must take steps to extend Moraghahakanda irrigation facilities to these areas.

The people appeal to Minister Maithreepla Sirisena not to forget the SLFP stronghold in Rajarata "Madawachchiya" and urge the government to do justice.