Features
Parakrama Samudraya, 1978 flood, and strength of tank bund
By Palitha Manchanayake
Former Irrigation Engineer, Sri Lanka and Hydrologist/Flood Forecaster to the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology, Sydney, Australia In this article, the author wishes to highlight his experience during the November 1978 cyclone, while working as an Irrigation Engineer (IE) attached to the Hydrology branch of the Irrigation Department, Sri Lanka.
That particular morning, Tilak Nikapitiya (IE) and I were called in by late Olsen Gunawardane, Senior Deputy Director (Research), to his office and asked us to take a ‘Four-Wheel Drive’ and proceed to Polonnaruwa immediately to meet A.D.S. Gunawardane (IE, Polonnaruwa). We were also expected to rescue and look after the Hydrological Field Unit and the Drilling Team of the Engineering Geology Division who had got marooned in the flood while working in the Maduru Oya area. Before leaving, Gunawardane showed us a photograph that had appeared on page one of the Ceylon Daily News on that day. It had been taken from a helicopter hovering above the Parakrama Samudraya .It showed the flood waves of Parakrama Samudraya overtopping its bund in many places. The Parakrama Samudraya Reservoir was at full capacity, and the water level was quite close to the bund top. Owing to the reservoir’s long fetch of water-spread and the high wind velocities that prevailed during the cyclone, the flood waves generated at the surface were overtopping the reservoir bund.
The author recollects that he had never encountered such a drastic and serious situation during his entire 49-year career as an Irrigation Engineer/Hydrologist. It was an alarming and critical situation considering the danger to the large population living in Polonnaruwa suburbs located below the Parakrama Samudra.
The Parakrama Samudraya Reservoir was built by King Parakramabahu the Great, during his reign (1153-1186 AD) and it has a capacity of 98,000 acre-feet, feeding approximately 18,200 acres of paddy cultivation. This reservoir has a tank bund,which is 52 feet high and nine miles long. When the reservoir is full, the entire nine-mile long bund is tested. It is an earthen dam constructed by the ancient Sri Lankan dam builders about 1,000 years ago.
If an earthen dam is to be built today, one has to follow the principles of soil mechanics, and adhere to the criteria involved in selecting the particular type of soil to be used in construction and the identification of suitable borrow areas for them, and maintaining the required standards of compacting and consolidating the soils. In this process, the mere ramming of soil would not do. It has to be done with the appropriate addition of water so that the maximum soil density is achieved through the optimum soil-moisture content. In the present day, this is achieved by compacting the soil with sheep-foot rollers and performing the ‘in-situ’ soil tests on site. But when the reservoir is on the verge of being overtopped by flood waves, it, in fact, tests the soil mechanics and the compaction techniques adopted using cattle and elephants done in ancient times. If there was a portion of earthen bund of poor quality it could fail and the dam could breach at that point. If this impending dam break happens at an unwanted and unexpected point on the dam, it could be disastrous and devastating, as so many civilians and property downstream of Parakrama Samudra would be seriously affected.
Knowing the imminent catastrophic danger, the Irrigation Engineer (IE) in charge of Polonnaruwa, A.D.S Gunawardane, the Government Agent (GA) Polonnaruwa, Austin Fernando, and a few other officials on duty, decided to get over a few bulldozers and retain them at the sluice and spillway sites, to breach the dam at these points if the need arose. The idea behind it was, if the predicted overnight rainfall occurs and the anticipated inflow to Parakrama Samudra does eventuate, then an artificially introduced breach of the dam at one of these particular outlets would enhance the draining of the floods along the already existing channels, rather than haphazard catastrophic flood damage occurring at an unwanted point over the downstream townships. In doing so, the ‘flood operation team’ would be controlling the flood somewhat, minimising damage to life and property, but the IE would be facing the danger of not being able to continue the issue of water to about 18,000 acres of paddy cultivation which was halfway through the Maha Season. Because of this artificial breaching of the dam, no water would be retained in the reservoir as it would completely empty. As such, it could result in crop failure of a vast acreage, which would be a significant political issue. Farmers who have invested their money in land preparation, seed-paddy, weedicide and pesticides would end up desperate and without any income, possibly creating farmer unrest in the area.
As such, the flood operators were very reluctant to go through with the breaching option unless they were left with no alternative. Yet another unknown factor was how much of the predicted rainfall would occur overnight in the already wet 28 square-mile catchment of Parakrama Samudraya , in addition to whatever inflow that came through Amban Ganga. So, after much deliberation that night, the ‘flood operation team’ decided to stay overnight leaving all sluice and spillway gates open, anticipating the predicted rain to fall over the catchment.
At dawn the following morning, a completely unexpected phenomenon was evident. Even though the reservoir water levels did not overtop the bund and were under control, the anticipated overnight rainfall had not really eventuated, and because the sluice and spillway gates were kept open overnight, the water levels had gone down drastically, causing ‘slip circle failures’ in the dam at many places along the entire stretch of the dam.
Even though there was a 12-foot wide roadway at the crest of the dam, a fair portion of the dam had caved-in with earth slips slumping into the reservoir, leaving only about a four-foot-wide section of the former roadway intact (Figure 2). This could be explained in engineering terms as ‘slip circle failures caused by the sudden drawdown of the water table. The increased pore water pressures of the soil have caused these slips to occur’. It was inevitable, as there were predictions of more overnight rain in the catchment which required due consideration, and there was no way of monitoring the inflow to Parakrama Samudraya at that late hour of the night. This happened in Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka in November 1978.
The Parakrama Samudraya had to be restored by re-constructing the entire stretch of the damaged bund, which resulted in a major exercise of dam construction. It was re-done with a much broader roadway at the dam crest, and also with big rock boulders in rip-rap to serve as wave-breakers in future.
In this ‘flood operation’ exercise of November 1978, all of 18,200 acres of paddy cultivation was saved, as the Parakrama Samudraya Reservoir was able to issue the required water for the rest of the Maha Season. Luckily, the much-feared disastrous breaching of the bund did not happen. It was indeed a revealing experience for all the Irrigation Engineers of the present day, who manage the ancient reservoirs built by Sri Lankan Kings. On further reflection, one could argue that had we taken the option of artificially breaching the dam bund at a sluice or spill site, we would have overcome the flood dissipating problem easily with a lesser cost of dam construction, but ended up with devastating crop failure of 18,200 acres of paddy cultivation.
What is amazing is that the nine-mile-long earth bund of Parakrama Samudraya stood strong without breaching against the force and the head of water generated by the cyclone, giving full credit to King Parakramabahu the Great and his men.
These were the sort of risks, problems and threats we were faced with when handling the 1978 flood event.
If the eight-foot-wide jogging strip (as proposed in Figure 3) were to be constructed, then it should be at least three feet below the Bund Top Level (B.T.L), in which case a retaining wall of some sort has to be built to ensure the safety of the 16-foot-wide roadway at the top. The construction of this retaining wall could be of concern with the existing structure of the earthen bund.
One case that comes to mind is how late R. Premadasa (then Prime Minister and the Minister of Local Government) around the 1985/86 period, installed a Pumping Station on top of the old Kantale Bund to provide drinking water to the nearby town. After operating the huge pumps for some time, the Bund failed due to the vibrations of continuous pumping. But in the case of the jogging strip at Parakrama Samudraya , one could expect minimal vibrations.
Some point out that no problems have been reported regarding the jogging track at Tissa Wewa in Tissamaharama, built in 2014. At Tissa Wewa, the road is by the side of the lake with a low bund height of about 15 ft. But in the case of Parakrama Samudra, the tank bund is higher, and it is a completely different scenario.
One more important aspect of the new construction that merits discussion is the non-existence of the rip-rap. They say that they are going to roll the big rock boulders downward. The big rock boulders or the rip-rap is actually there to break the waves that occur when the reservoir is operating with water levels above the High Flood Level (H.F.L). The Full Supply Level (F.S.L) generally corresponds to the Full Operating Capacity of the Reservoir. During a special situation, when a flood occurs while the water level remains at F.S.L., the radial gates would be opened. At the point when this flood passes through the spillway system with all its gates open, the extra lift of the water level of the reservoir is called the ‘Flood Lift’. In Sri Lankan reservoirs, the ‘Flood Lift’ is generally calculated for a flood event of 1 in 100-year frequency. This ‘Flood Lift’ is the basis to decide on the H.F.L. of the reservoir. The difference between the H.F.L. and the Bund Top Level (B.T.L) is referred to as the ‘Free Board’ which accounts for the waves that are generated at the surface of the reservoir. The rip-rap which consists of the big boulders is there to break the waves, and it has to be placed between the H.F.L and B.T.L of the reservoir. So, if they are going to roll the big boulders below the H.F.L with the new construction, the purpose would be lost, and if a flood event like the one in 1978 occurs again, there would be one less defence mechanism for wave-breaking, which could be awful.
Therefore, I do not think that it is advisable to do any sort of alteration, meddle with or disturb the good old bund.
(The writer is a former Irrigation Engineer, Sri Lanka and Hydrologist/Flood Forecaster to the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology, Sydney, Australia)
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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