Iranian President to open a symbol of Iran-Sri Lanka relations ‘Uma Oya’

President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Ebrahim Raisi is scheduled to make an official bilateral visit to Sri Lanka at the invitation of President Ranil Wickremesinghe to jointly declare open the “Uma Oya Multipurpose Development Project” Tomorrow, on April 24, The Foreign Affairs Ministry said.

They said the Uma Oya Multipurpose Development Project, funded by Sri Lanka and Iran, is designed to generate and add 120 Megawatts of electricity to Sri Lanka’s national grid and provide irrigation to approximately 25,000 acres of paddy lands in the south-eastern part of Sri Lanka.

However, after economic sanctions were imposed on that country, Sri Lanka undertook to fund the bulk of the project. This was after the initial tranche of $ 79 million was transferred by Iran and the country continued to support the project with technical assistance with over 400 Iranian engineers having worked on the site.

The Oma Oya complex consists of dams across Dalgolla Oya, and channelling water over a 4 km tunnel to Mathatilla Oya where another dam is constructed to channel water through a tunnel to the Uma Oya Power Station. The hydroelectric plant has already started generating electricity and the complex is expected to irrigate approximately 25,000 acres of paddy land.

The project that was originally scheduled to be completed in 2015, faced multiple problems. Sri Lanka could not pay the contractors for years due to the Iranian regime coming under sanctions. Banks were reluctant to deal with Iran despite there being provisions for financial transactions that did not concern sanctioned individuals or State entities.

There were further environmental concerns concerning the project. Construction of the tunnel linking the reservoir to the hydroelectric plant caused severe drainage of groundwater and earth tremors in at least 10 villages in Bandarawela. There have been reports of wells drying up in some areas due to the project and at least 1,200 houses being damaged due to the construction work. Adequate compensation had not been granted to these affected families.

The visit of the Iranian President to Sri Lanka, while there are increased tensions in the Middle East, especially between Iran and Israel, it would be an important message of the importance placed by the Iranian regime on its relations with Sri Lanka.

A group of senior officers of the Iranian security forces visited Sri Lanka on April 17 to look into the preliminary security measures regarding the visit of the Iranian President. The plane carrying the Iranian President is due to arrive at the Mattala Airport and he is due to leave the country on the same day, April 24.

Pictuer: Internet

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