Sri Lanka marked a significant milestone today (8) when the waters of the last but biggest reservoir of the multipurpose Mahaweli Project at Moragahakanda opened its sluice gates to irrigate parched dry lands in faraway Vanni in the Northern Province on one side and Rajarata, Wayamba, Central and Eastern Provinces on the other.
President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe declared open Moragahakanda a short while ago.
With the commissioning of the Moragahakanda-Kalu Ganga reservoir of the Kalu Ganga Dam, an increase of 64,000,000 cubic metres of water will flow from the reservoir to far flung regions including, the Vanni, Matale, Anuradhapura, Trincomalee and Polonnaruwa areas.
Water from both the Moragahakanda and Kalu Ganga reservoirs will be primarily used to support agricultural needs in an area of at least 81,422 hectares. This would increase rice production by 81% or 109,000 tons, amounting to an annual estimated monetary benefit of US$1.67 million.
In addition to the irrigation of land, water from the Moragahakanda Reservoir will be used to power the 25-megawatt Moragahakanda Hydroelectric Power Station.
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