New machinery to expedite work:

Uma Oya project, a boon for agriculture sector

By Shirajiv Sirimane

The Uma Oya project was initiated by the Government to provide the much needed irrigation and drinking water to many residents of the Uva, South and other areas. The project was launched with Iranian aid and was promoted by President Mahinda Rajapaksa who realised the great need for a project of this nature for these areas.

The project was initially drafted by the Central Engineering Consultancy Bureau in 1991, but was stalled due to financial issues.

Later, with the backing of President Rajapaksa and the involvement of the Government of Iran, an agreement was reached between the governments of the countries and the project came to be realised through funds granted by the Export Development Bank of Iran. As a result, the foundation stone for the Uma Oya Multi-purpose Development Project was laid in Wellawaya, Alikota-ara on April 2008. The construction of the Uma Oya Multi-purpose Project received a major boost with the introduction of the tunnel digger machine recently.

This is for the construction of two rolling compact concrete dams, an underground hydro-power plant with 134 MW capacity and an underground tunnel about 25km long.

This is the first time that such a machine is being used in Sri Lanka. It had been used to dig tunnels under the city of London for its underground rail network and it is being used here to drill the Uma Oya tunnels.

Main source

Uma Oya, one of the major tributaries of the Mahaweli River, is the major water source of the Rantambe Reservoir. The key objective of the Uma Oya Multi-purpose Development Project is to transfer water from the river to the Lunugamwehera Reservoir and provide water for developmental projects in the Hambantota district. Numerous development activities are expected to come up in the districts of Hambantota, Moneragala and Badulla under this project.

There are several objectives for the project including the generation of hydro-power, irrigation and the provision of drinking water and water for industrial activities. Providing water for the second International Airport, the industrial zone and the port in Hambantota and the oil refinery is the major objective of the project. It would generate hydro-electricity and help irrigate 10,000 acres of farmland in the dry zone of the South Eastern areas of the country.

The capacity of the underground hydro-power station is 120 MW. It is expected to contribute 231 GW annually to the National Power Grid. Electricity generated at the power station will be transmitted to Badulla via a 27 km high-voltage transmission line.

Expenditure

The project is targeted to be completed by an Iranian company named Farab within five years. The total expenditure is estimated to be Rs. 76,316 million of which Rs. 24,600 million will be borne by the Sri Lankan Government. The expenditure estimated for construction work is Rs. 60,842 million. Eighty five percent of this will be granted by the Export Development Bank of Iran while the Sri Lankan Government will foot the rest of the bill. In addition, an estimated Rs. 15,475 million pertaining to costs of land acquisition, resettlement, environmental impact mitigation, restoration of the irrigation network, project management and consultancy would be borne by the Sri Lankan Government.

Irrigation project

Under the proposed Uma Oya Multi-purpose Project, two reservoirs will be constructed while the storage capacity of the Handapanagala Reservoir will be expanded.

In addition, numerous canals will be constructed alongside the Alikota-ara regulating reservoir and the Kuda Oya reservoir. The Handapanagala anicut will also be built to the Kirindi Oya.

Moreover, water diverted from the Uma Oya will be directed to the Lunugamwehera reservoir through the Kirindi Oya. Thus, a massive area is proposed to be irrigated by the left and right bank canals of the Lunugamwehera reservoir. Once completed, the project will irrigate 5,000 hectares of agricultural land by distributing water from the Uma Oya to the South Eastern region of Sri Lanka.