With the aim of upgrading and improving the water supply to the surrounding towns in the Beruwela area, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) extended assistance to construct a Pre-Stressed Concrete Tank (PC Tank), which was opened recently. The tank was inaugurated by City Planning and Water Supply Minister Rauff Hakeem and Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Kenichi Suganuma.
Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne also participated in the event. Others who participated were JICA Sri Lanka Office Chief Representative Fusato Tanaka, City Planning and Water Supply Ministry Secretary D. G. M. V. Hapuarachchi, National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) Chairman K. A. Ansar, NWSDB General Manager Deepthi Sumanasekara and officials attached to the City Planning and Water Supply Ministry and the National Water Supply and Drainage Board.
JICA supported the construction of the PC tank at Beruwala by leading Japanese private company Abe Nikko Kogyo Co. Ltd. The company’s experience and unique technologies, and proven track record in the construction of over 5,000 PC tanks in Japan, had earned a high reputation.Abe Nikko Kogyo had developed the technology of PC tanks in 1957 and is the pioneer of PC tanks, currently possessing 60 percent of the share of PC tanks constructed in Japan.
Utilising funding provided by the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL), the National Water Supply and Drainage Board had also implemented the project component, that is, the upgrading of transmission mains from the Kethhena Water Treatment Plant and the upgrading of pump houses in Beruwala and the Darga Town, in parallel with the PC tank construction.
These interventions have now improved the service level of over 40,000 existing water supply connections by ensuring a reliable 24-hour supply. Additionally, these interventions also enable another 20,000 new water supply connections in both the Beruwala and Darga town areas.
