MAVIL ARU DRYING UP

The Mavil Aru reservoir is facing a severe threat of drying up with the prevailing dry weather, an official of the Kavanthissa Farmer Organisation said.

The reservoir provides water to 22, 000 acres of paddy in the Allai colonisation scheme and farmers had now got together in performing a gigantic task of saving water that is left, by blocking Mahaveli water using sand bags in the Kanda Kadu area.

“It is natural that once in every two years, when the harvest of the Yala season is maturing the water levels in the Anicut to go down. But

It is natural that once in every two years, when the harvest of the Yala season is maturing the water levels in the Anicut to go down. But it was strange that this time before the resumption of farmer activities of the Yala season, the Anicut showing early signs of drying up rapidly

it was strange that this time before the resumption of farmer activities of the Yala season, the Anicut showing early signs of drying up rapidly,” they said.

The Kavanthissa Farmer Organisation stated that this was a step taken every two years, when the water levels go down.

The last time they did this was in 2014. The Treasurer of the organisation Asela Sampath said that they had made the authorities aware of the situation at the cultivation committee meetings.

“The officials were not aware of the water levels depleting until the farmers informed them. The farmers requested that a system should be in place well in time to overcome this seasonal issue,” he said.

The President of the Kavanthissa Farmer Organization Sudath Dissanayake stated that Seruwila, Verugal, and Muttur Divisional Secretariat areas were facing shortage of water. “The increased levels of the silt in the Mavil Aru Anicut also prevents water from flowing into it. Therefore the silt has to be removed first. Otherwise the temporary embankment put up with sand bags would serve no purpose,” he said.

Commending the action of the farmers, he called upon the authorities provide assistance to the farmers, who were engaged in this act.

The Trincomalee Zonal Irrigation director S.M.B.M. Azaar replying to our query appreciated the yeoman task of the farmers, but feared that they would not be able to continue this activity every year, and a permanent solution had to be found.