(UDHAYAM, COLOMBO) – Most of the water courses and drainage systems in Colombo are clogged with mud, garbage and salvinia, hampering free flowing of water as of late. The circumstances pose flood situation in Colombo and its suburbs even during light showers, making great difficulty for transportation. Further, the area is prone to dengue fever, recording a number of dengue victims from the region.
Upon realising this difficulty, the Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne directed the Navy to undertake the clean up work of those water courses and drainage systems enabling the uninterrupted flowing of water. The project was carried out as part of another social responsibility project of the Sri Lanka Navy.
The cleaning effort commenced on May 31, has been successfully implemented in Wathtala, Kelaniya, Peliyagoda, and Kerawalapitiya localities. The Navy possess a dedicated team of officers and sailors for this particular task. As per the directives of the Commander of the Navy, the cleaning effort has been carried out in order to enable transportation by means of small boats.
The Dutch Canal where the existing cleaning is being carried out, runs all the way up to the Negombo Lagoon in parallel with Colombo – Katunayake Highway and a few other water courses are connected to the same. The clean up work of the water course clogged with debris and salvinia, commenced on June 19 and 3.5 km of the canal have been completely cleaned as of now. The assistance of the officials and equipment of the Land Reclamation and Development Cooperation has been extended in this regard.