The Hon. Anura Karunathilaka - Minister of Urban Development, Construction and Housing
The Minister responded to a question on drinking water shortages in Ratnapura District, stating that NWSDB and community schemes together serve about 48% of the district’s drinking water needs, with 12 NWSDB projects and 490 community water projects currently operating. He outlined ongoing and planned interventions, including distribution improvements under “Visal Ratnapura” Phase I, a Rs. 1,528 million project to add about 178 km of pipelines and 7,000 household connections, and 21 projects in areas without NWSDB supply. He said there is no separate “Phase 2” project, but further projects are planned under the NWSDB’s 2025–2029 programme and the “Praja Jala Abhimani” programme, with detailed annexes placed in the Library.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, the question concerns the drinking water shortage in Ratnapura District. My answer:
¶ 02 (a)(i),(ii),(iii) The Sabaragamuwa Province has 18 Divisional Secretary Divisions comprising 575 Grama Niladhari divisions. Of these, 373 GN divisions have full or partial water supply provided by the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB). In Ratnapura District, 12 NWSDB water supply projects operate, serving approximately 87,000 household connections. In addition, community-based water supply schemes provide drinking water to a significant proportion; about 23% of the district population is supplied by community schemes, while about 25.7% is supplied by NWSDB. Nationally, coverage is around 62%; thus in Ratnapura about 48% of the population’s drinking water need is being addressed through these systems.
¶ 03 Under “Visal Ratnapura” Phase I, several distribution enhancement projects have been implemented, including the Kolonna pipeline extension and the project to divert surplus Kahawatta water to Pelmadulla.
¶ 04 For 2025–2029, the NWSDB has a comprehensive plan, including the Eheliyagoda water supply project and others (details in Annex 01).
¶ 05 (b)(i) There is no separate “Phase 2” project titled as such. Under “Visal Ratnapura” Phase I, a distribution system improvement project is being implemented with an estimated allocation of Rs. 1,528 million (details in Annex 02). This project covers A4 main road from Ratnapura to Parakaduwa and lateral roads on both sides, and 10 km along the Ratnapura–Panadura road from the Moragahayata junction with laterals. It proposes approximately 178 km of distribution pipelines and will provide drinking water to about 7,000 additional households.
¶ 06 (b)(ii),(iii) As per Annex 01, 21 water projects are underway in areas without NWSDB supply; further new projects are planned under the 2025–2029 plan.
¶ 07 Currently, 490 community water projects are in operation in the district, serving about 82,900 families (details in Annex 03).
¶ 08 (b)(iv) Under the “Praja Jala Abhimani” programme commenced in 2021, a three-year plan is being implemented. Based on annual Budget allocations, planned projects will proceed.
¶ 09 (c) Not applicable.
¶ 10 Annexes 01, 02 and 03 and detailed answers are placed in the Library.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Saturday, 1 March 2025 ·No. 1741955797040395 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Anura Karunathilaka - Minister of Urban Development, Construction and Housing. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 1 March 2025. No. 1741955797040395. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/149