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Flood control system to be set up in Colombo
View(s):A flood and drainage management system aimed at preventing flooding in the Colombo city and its outskirts costing more than Rs. 21 billion will get off the ground early next year, a senior official said.
The design for the project which is already prepared following an extensive study on the flooding situation in the city and its outskirts includes introduction of new canal systems, underground tunnels for the flow of water and pumping stations to discharge excess water, Secretary to the Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development, Nihal Rupasinghe told the Sunday Times.
The canals and drainage systems will be prepared in a manner it could retain water during a rain fall 450 mm in 24 hours as against the current capacity of 280 mm, he said.
He said under the proposed project a canal will be constructed in the Madiwela (South) area linking the Parliament lake while another canal from Madiwela (East) will drain the water directly into the Kelani river at Ambatale.
A new canal will also come up in Kolonnawa draining the water to the Kelani river at Sedawatta.
A pumping station will be set up at Nagalagam Street to pump out excess water into the Kelani river at Grandpass while in Mutuwal a new tunnel will be set up.
He said that from Torrington too another tunnel will be constructed drawing water into the sea at Bambalapitiya to avoid flooding in the Colombo 7 area.
Under the project they have also identified certain other areas where water accumulates during heavy rains and measures will be taken to drain out the water from these areas.
A flood control centre with a real time monitoring system will also be set up under the project. The project is expected to be completed by 2018.
