Jaffna water project cost swells by 580 percent; engineers cry foul

The Irrigation Department has floated a proposal to implement a water supply project for Jaffna at a cost of Rs 13.6bn despite the project already having been approved by the Cabinet at Rs 2bn in 2018.

The new price quoted by the Department is nearly 580 percent higher than what was proposed by the Department and sanctioned by the Cabinet in September 2018 as a joint proposal of the Prime Minister’s office and the Ministry of Agriculture. The foundation stone for the project was laid in August last year.

But the Department is now proceeding with the new estimate which, engineers say, is based on “improper application of engineering and adoption of unnecessary construction methods, among other things”. This was pointed out to the subject Minister Chamal Rajapaksa, and the Director General of National Planning at a meeting in late January but there has been no action.

“This is mismanagement, waste and robbery,” a senior engineer said, requesting anonymity. The technology is simple. Rainwater is collected in compounds and in an artificial tank of 1,500 acres with a 25-foot tall dam. There will be a pump house and the initiative is expected to issue 50,000 cubic metres of water to the 650,000-strong population every day of the year.

The project proponent is Dr R. K. Guganesharajah of the University of Surrey. He selected the Irrigation Department. A team of 12 post-graduate students examined its suitability from 1999 to 2011.

A feasibility study has already been done by the Irrigation Department and experts. And the estimate placed at Rs 2bn. Environmental clearance was obtained in 2019. The project can be completed in one year with the possibility of further cost reductions if done prudently, engineers said.

The work is already delayed. The Cabinet also authorised in 2018 for a supplementary allocation of Rs 300mn to the Irrigation Ministry to start implementation and to provide the remaining Rs 1,700mn the following year.

At present, Jaffna has 17 projects run by the National Water Supply and

Drainage Board issuing just 5,000 cubic metres of water a day.

It is also learned that at a Galgamuwa meeting chaired by the Irrigation Ministry Secretary last week, it was suggested to abandon the project altogether in favour of an Asian Development Bank-funded desalination plant for the Jaffna Peninsula. It has already been opposed on the grounds that turning salt water to drinking water would negatively impact fisherfolk, the ecosystem and the coastal environment.

In October last year, the Cabinet also approved a freshwater project called ‘A River for Jaffna’ at a cost of Rs 3.6bn. Irrigation officials in the North have repeatedly warned that the shortage of potable water is dire and needs urgent attention. And that the ‘River for Jaffna’ initiative was actually proposed 50 years ago.

There is extensive groundwater use in the peninsula. This has led to increased salinity in the water and the availability of freshwater is rapidly declining. The region is otherwise dependent on rainfall which is scantier now with increased periods of drought.