The Hon. Aravinda Senarath - Deputy Minister of Land and Irrigation

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, today’s debate addresses the severe floods and landslides that our country has faced—the worst natural disaster in our history.

¶ 02 The Irrigation Ministry and its agencies, critical to the national economy, were heavily impacted—both riverine systems and Mahaweli schemes. The Department of Irrigation administers 73 major reservoirs (across major, medium and minor systems), each under the responsibility of a named engineer. Despite opposition allegations, the Department’s engineers and technical officers managed the situation methodically and effectively.

¶ 03 Through its Hydrology and Water Management divisions, the Department operates by plan. There are 88 upstream gauges per reservoir cluster and rain gauges across catchments to manage inflows. Data are compiled every 24 hours and published on the Department’s website; during emergencies, updates are hourly or every 12 hours, in coordination with the Met Department, to minimize damage.

¶ 04 Similarly, the Mahaweli Authority, which supports national water management and agriculture, operates 13 major reservoirs with advanced, automated systems and CCTV monitoring, tracking inflows, storage, and releases in real-time.

¶ 05 On 26–27 November 2025, Sri Lanka received the highest rainfall on record—some districts got 500–600 mm in two days, roughly a quarter to a third of annual totals. Engineers stayed at stations, away from their families, and managed the systems to minimize downstream harm.

¶ 06 While government agencies worked, the opposition searched for faults; but there was no “dirt” to find. The Mahaweli Authority and the Irrigation Department deserve appreciation.

¶ 07 Year after year, Colombo District faces floods, yet over the past two decades successive administrations have failed to permanently manage it. In recent years, the Iginiyagala spill has repeatedly caused flooding in Ampara (2023–2025). While there are chronic hotspots, previous governments failed to manage them effectively. Our government is putting plans in place—not to prevent rain or floods entirely, but to manage and minimize damage.

¶ 08 We cannot resettle people back into high-risk zones. In Nuwara Eliya, Kandy, and Badulla, many homes are destroyed and lives are at risk. Together with government policy decisions, the Lands Ministry is preparing to provide safe lands—using state lands under LRC and Mahaweli—for resettlement.