Agriculture Must Receive Boost In Batticaloa District
July 22nd, 2007
By S. Visvaiah

Batticaloa District, covering a land area of 951.5 square- miles and inland water way of 65.1 square- miles has high potential for Paddy, Coconut, Animal husbandry, Fisheries etc. where 85 per cent of the population are engaged in agriculture.
We have 145, 000 acres of paddy lands, which constitute 1/12th acreage in Sri Lanka. We have 17 major tanks, irrigating only about 66,000 acres of which 25,000 acres are double cropped. The rest is cultivated for Maha under rain- fed conditions. The 1957 Major floods, the 1978 Cyclone and periodical floods and droughts together with the ethnic conflict, have drained the economy of the farming population.
I could well remember that during the last 40 - 50 years, when Ministers, Prime Ministers and Presidents visited Batticaloa District, chaired meetings at the Batticaloa Kachcheri, the farmers complained about their problems and requested them to execute the following important works which are absolutely necessary to boost their agriculture and raise the economy of the farming population of the District.
As president of the Farmers Association, Livestock Breeders Co-operative Society, Coconut Producers Association and Kathiravely Milk Collecting Centre, I submitted petitions, at the request of the farmers to K.W. Devanayagam and 4 other Ministers on 19.01.1989, another petition to former President D.B. Wijetunga, on 12.05.1994 in connection with his May Day message to the nation regarding the Madura Oya and the Allai Extension Irrigation works to benefit Batticaloa District farmers, another petition to D.M. Jayaretne, Minister of Agriculture on 12.01.2001 regarding his notification in the newspapers that he was to boost agriculture with the assistance of six other Ministers and another petition to Milinda Moragoda, the then Minister of Economic Reforms, Science and Technology on 12.01.2002 when he announced that the then Prime Minister’s 100 day accelerated development programme will be implemented to develop Batticaloa District and raise the economy of the farming population. Nothing happened so far, and we are where we were. A good lot of farmers returned to their villages from the refugee camps just a few days back and are repairing their damaged cottages and vegetations and roaming in the jungles in search of their cattle.
We are happy to hear from the President that the poorest Divisional Secretariats of the District are to receive the highest priority in development activities and the farmers living in the Vavunativu, Paddipalai, Kokkaddicholai and Vaharai Divisional Secretariat Divisions appeal to the President to direct the authorities concerned to attend to the following items of work immediately to provide employment opportunities for those who have lost their two season crops and undergoing severe hardships.
Important items of work are as follows
1.Raising the Unnichchai Tank by 6 feet to minimize floods and increase the capacity of the Tank in order to bring more land under irrigated paddy and provide drinking water to Batticaloa, Kattankudy and other adjoining villages.
2. Amalgamate Rugam and Kitulwewa tanks by damming the Maha Oya river, which flows between Rugam and Kitulwewa tanks and impound the Maha Oya waters to benefit 10 to 15000 acres of fertile paddy lands, now cultivated under rain-fed conditions, and using the flood waters of Maha Oya river.
3. Extend the Igniyagala L.B. Channel to Porativu pattu to bring more lands under irrigated paddy.
4. Divert the Maduru Oya waters to augment Rugam and Vahaneri tanks and to extend the Maduru Oya L.B Channel up to Verugal to irrigate Kathiraveli fields and to feed en route the village tanks in Kathiravely so that even paddy fields under village tanks too could be cultivated with paddy for both seasons - Maha and Yala.
Apart from the above irrigation works, the following important items also need immediate attention.
5. The bridge connecting Mahilavadduvan and Karaveddi villages is in a dilapidated condition for the last several years, making movement of vehicles and human beings impossible right round the year. Since paddy fields are situated on either sides of this dilapidated bridge, the farmers undergo untold hardships during the cultivation season.
6. The 4 1/2 mile length of agricultural road called “Morris Road” constructed and maintained by the Irrigation Department is lying in an abandoned state for the last 15-20 years. Farmers, Dairymen, Milk collectors, Chena- cultivators and Fishermen cannot use this road with their produce and by taking a circuitous route, they undergo severe hardships.
7. The Karadianaru Agricultural Station, which functioned as a Seed station, Research Centre, Farm School for educated youths, an In-Service training Centre for officers is in ruins for the last several years due to the armed conflict. If this is reopened, the problems of the farmers regarding seed paddy, planting materials, breeding stock etc. will be solved. This will also serve as a research station for the Agriculture Faculty students of the Eastern University, Vantharumoolai.
8. The Batticaloa Lagoon mouth which gets blocked by sand bar formation from about May/ June each year, inundating about 4000 acres of paddy lands and roads on the periphery of the lagoon for about 2-3 weeks at the height of the monsoon rains, has to be dredged to promote safe harbour within the lagoon for deep sea fishing boats during the best fishing season — May to October. Dredging of a small section was done some years back and stopped. This too needs immediate attention.
Animal Husbandry
Sri Lanka is producing only 15 per cent of its requirement of milk and 85 per cent is being imported at a cost of 12 billion Rupees. Batticaloa District has high potential for animal husbandry, with 47000 acres of reserved pasture lands, 300000 acres of forest reserve, 27550 acres of coconut land together with 145000 acres of paddy fields, providing grazing facilities in rotation, as the fields get harvested and tank beds of 17 major tanks provide grazing facilities in the dry season. The 300000 acres forest reserve provides pasture during the rainy season as the fields are cultivated for Maha.
Due to the rigorous armed conflict, cattle population and milk production dwindled and the farmers were very badly affected. If the above mentioned irrigation works are undertaken and channels opened up, Ground-nut cultivation and Maize cultivation will be taken up on a large scale and installation of cattle feed plants will be accelerated as in India and automatically cattle population and milk production will increase.
Coconut Cultivation
We have 27750 acres of Coconut lands from which I could remember during the years 1930- 1940, Coconuts were taken to South India by boats and lorry loads taken to Dambulla area. The cyclone of 1978 damaged 24200 acres of coconut plantations and of this extent, 17750 acres were replanted on a subsidy scheme, organized by the Coconut Cultivation Board. But unfortunately, due to the armed conflict, all plantations were completely destroyed. Now that the area is completely cleared of the LTTE, the Coconut Cultivation Board may take appropriate action to replant the coconut lands on an attractive subsidy scheme.
Considering the 15-20 years suffering of the Batticaloa District Farmers, we are certain that the President will get all the items of work, neglected for the last several years, executed at an accelerated speed.
In this connection I wish to point out that the underground Channel Tunnel, 39 Kilometers in length across the English Channel, connecting Britain and France was constructed within 08 years and the Seikam Tunnel connecting 03 Islands off Japan with the main land between Konshu and Kokaido 53 kilometres in length, was constructed within 20 years.
Let us follow this speed of activities for the well- being of our countrymen, irrespective of ethnic differences.
The writer is a respected “gentleman” agriculturist of Batticaloa and has served as President of the Farmers Association, Livestock breders cooperative society and coconut producers association of the district.