(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) – Sri Lankan Prime Minister Monday inaugurated the Greater Kurunegala Water Supply and Sewerage Project that will benefit over 70,000 people in the greater Kurunegala area.
The project constructed by the China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) in collaboration with National Water Supply and Drainage Board is expected to solve the drinking and sanitation problem for thousands of people in the district and take forward the development of the Kurunegala district, which is one of the main districts in the country.
Speaking at the launch of the project, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said this project is part of the development the government continues to roll out across Sri Lanka.
“This is one of many development projects we are delivering as part of our plans to bring better services and facilities to people,” he said.
“Sanitation and water are two basic needs which we must provide to the people and I am glad to vest this project with the public today,” the Premier added.
The Rs. 5.9 billion project will provide clean water for households, government and private sector offices, schools, hospitals, tourist hotels, a daily floating population of over 70,000, according to a Xinhua report.
The water supply network provides Kurunegala Teaching Hospital with a 24/7 water supply for the first time.
The project will provide disposal of wastewater for 3,500 domestic and commercial institutions through its well-organized sewerage network. The new sewerage system protects the Kurunegala Tank, which had been exposed to pollution due to wastewater discharge from surrounding dwellings.
Minister of Urban Development, Water Supply and Drainage Rauff Hakeem said despite many hardships, the Greater Kurunegala Water Supply and Sewerage Project was completed, denying allegations that this project would pose a threat to the lakes and wells.
He said the government would launch similar projects in other areas where clean water was scarce with an aim of providing clean water and sanitation to all Sri Lankans by 2020.
According to the NWSDB, by 2020, all the emerging metro cities such as Kandy, Hambantota, Trincomalee, Dambulla, Jaffna, Galle, Gampaha, Kurunegala and Nuwara-Eliya as well as large township such as Vavuniya, Badulla, Matara, Anuradhapura and Ratnapura, which attract a substantial portion of the population and increase economic activities in coming years, will have centralized sewerage systems, which in turn will ensure environmental sustainability.
Yang Zuoyuan, economic and commercial counselor from the Chinese Embassy, said the Greater Kurunegala Water Supply and Sewerage Project will boost the quality of life and protect the environment in Kurunegala, and the underground water and lake water quality will also be improved through the waste water treatment of this project.
