Timber Racket under the guise of tank renovation

100 year old tree cut down under the guise of renovating agrarian tank in A'pura

by Zulfick Farzan 15-09-2020 | 5:47 PM

Colombo (News 1st); Mammoth trees that are over 100 years old located on the banks of the Ihala-Thalawa Wewa in Anuradhapura have been cut down.

Locals in the area allege contractors are engaged in a timber racket under the guise of developing the agrarian tank/wewa.

10 months ago, the renovation of the Ihala-Thalawa Wewa located in the heart of Thalawa, Anuradhapura commenced following requests made by the farming community for many years.

The project cost is over Rs. 30 Million and is funded by the World Bank as part of the Climate Resilience Improvement Project.

A firm known as Jayantha Contracts located in Galnewa had undertaken the contract to remove silt in the wewa and to renovate the banks and gates.

According to our correspondent, after stripping the mammoth trees for timber, the remaining parts were dumped into the wewa by the contractor.

Locals urge the authorities to take stern action against those responsible for cutting down trees which are more than 100 years and causing serious issues to the environment in the area.