Development - rapid and well planned:

Hambantota to be second to none

By Shirajiv SIRIMANE in Hambantota

Colombo was governed by many rulers including the Portuguese, Dutch and British for centuries and they all contributed to the development of the capital.

Harbours, airports, power houses, highways, hospitals and other infrastructure was built by both the private sector and the government, making Colombo the cynosure of all eyes.

Similarly, Hambantota too was governed by all these rulers. Unfortunately, in contrast to Colombo, Hambantota was cold-shouldered and apart from the salt plains and the Weerawila domestic airport, no other major development activity took place there.

The British High Commissioner looking at the master plan of the harbour (top) HIA proposed airport hotel.

Water for both drinking and irrigation was a major problem while access to roads, health and education were considered luxuries. Barring Peacock Beach Hotel and the Hambantota Rest House, quality accommodation for tourists too was hard to find. There was also no need to have more than 300 hotel rooms in the area as Hambantota was never considered a stopover destination, but merely a temporary stop for people travelling to Yala or Kataragama.

Two political leaders, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Chamal Rajapaksa realised this plight and made several investment proposals which were shunned by successive governments over the years.

It is a fact that the Hambantota harbour proposal was made over 30 years ago, but it was just confined to a proposal.

The Western Province today has all the luxuries with all infrastructure falling in to place. However, whenever there is rain for over two hours, the roads get flooded and traffic jams become the order of the day. The problem with Colombo is the unplanned and ad hoc development which the Urban Development Authority is now trying to rectify with the introduction of uniformity. This same scenario is evident in Kandy, Galle and Matara.

The CEO of the Hambantota Chamber of Commerce, Azmi Thassim, who is also an entrepreneur, has seen the mass transformation of Hambantota.

"The best thing that is happening to Hambantota is not the rapid development, but the well-planned manner in which it is being implemented". He said that great pains have been taken not to repeat the shortcomings of Colombo in Hambantota. "Hambantota will be the country's first pre-planned developed city and would be the envy of other districts in the future.

Well planned

CEO HDCC, Azmi Thassim

"In all other districts, people have to go from one place to another to obtain certain documentation when it comes to government related matters.

"This won't be a problem here as all these facilities would be provided under one roof at the new administration building that is coming up in Hambantota where all government offices would be housed. It is a one-stop shop for all government-related activities.", Thassim said.

Similarly, at the Ruhunu Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa International Port too, the new administration building would house Customs, quarantine and all other maritime-related activates.

The Port of Hambantota is planned as a Service and Industrial Port and subsequently could be developed as a transshipment port depending on the increasing cargo volumes.

Relieve pressure

A new port will help relieve pressure on the Colombo Port, and also provide services to ships that normally take three-and-a-half day detours from their shipping lanes to receive these services, including refuelling, maintenance and logistics and buying provisions and medical supplies.

Proposals to build a port in Hambantota date back over three decades, but plans never progressed beyond conceptual stages. The Port of Hambantota project was finally launched after Mahinda Rajapaksa, a native of Hambantota, was elected President of Sri Lanka in 2005.

Shangrila Hotel to be built in Hambantota

Administraion building of Hambantota port The Suriyawewa Cricket Stadium

At the water-filing ceremony of the port, President Rajapaksa, the mentor of the project, said that every drop of water that fills up this great port should dissolve and wipe out the feelings of weakness and inability that once prevailed among the people of the area.

"It is not sea water that will fill this port, but the future prosperity of our nation. From this port will emerge our true economic independence."

He said "We must announce to the world that this is a massive technological achievement built in Sri Lanka. Therefore, we will not be a nation that is satisfied with supplying only fuel and water to ships. This port must lead to the emergence of tens of thousands of employment opportunities."

Completion in July

This 13-storey building will facilitate the administrative and engineering divisions of the Hambantota Port. The building is situated inside the port premises, overlooking the Hambantota coastline, within 500 metres from the docks.

Designed by Tanya and Suren Wickramasinghe Architects, the building is scheduled for completion in July 2011.

Thassim said the master design to develop Hambantota is now slowly but surely falling in to place. "Don't expect wonders in one or two years; this is a long-term project". He said the plan includes highways and ring roads, flyovers through Hambantota and a rail link from Matara.

"Today it takes six hours from Colombo to Hambantota, but soon travel time will come down to three hours on the Colombo-Matara expressway. This will encourage more investors to come to Hambantota; the reduced travel time and attractions in Hambantota will also woo both local and foreign tourists to Hambantota, this time to stay over for two to three days.

The beach from the Hambantota bus stand to Peacock Beach Hotel will be developed for recreation and will also be used for the inaugural South Asian Beach Games to be conducted at the end of the year" he said.

Over 2,000 new hotel rooms including five-stars are expected to be built within the next three years. Leading hotel chain Shangri-La too has been allocated land near Sisilasagama.

There are also plans by Sri Lanka Insurance to build a four-star hotel while another hotel is to be built near the proposed Mattala Airport.

The Korean-built convention centre, which will provide facilities to host major conferences, too would offer accommodation. The new sea plane port too is being built close to Mattala.

Commonwealth Games bid

"These developments will help make a successful bid for the Commonwealth Games in 2018".

Thassim said and added that awareness among the public on the development of Hambantota is not adequate. "People see construction vehicles, new construction sites, but they do not know what is happening. This is not the way; more education should be given to the public on the massive development" he said.

He said they would conduct awareness programs, especially job-oriented programs, so that the 33 percent youth population in Hambantota could gear themselves for future employment.

British High Commissioner's visit

The British High Commissioner, in Sri Lanka John Rankin was on a three-day visit to Hambantota to gather first-hand information on the development of Hambantota.

He said that he was very impressed with the scale of development that is being made in phases at the port and the airport. "I think over 70 percent of the airport tarmac is completed.

A lot has been achieved in a short time." Commenting on the Hambantota Port, he said that he was happy that construction is being carried out in stages. "This is the sensible and smart way to move ahead", he said.

The marketing connected to the Commonwealth Games would give unprecedented exposure to Hambantota and would also bring in revenue and investment to the region. This was also evident when the city hosted World Cup matches.

The development in Hambantota would also help the country gain more investments and the country can be proud that it would have a second capital city outside Colombo in time to come.