Mahaweli River

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Mahaweli (Mahaweli Ganga)
River
256px Mahaweli River flowing through Gampola
Country	Sri Lanka
Source	Central Province
Mouth	Bay of Bengal
- location	Trincomalee
- elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	335 km (208 mi)

The Mahaweli River (Sinhala: මහවැලි ගඟ, literally "Great Sandy River"; Tamil: மகாவலி ஆறு [mahawali gangai]),^[1] is a 335 km (208 mi) long river, ranking as the longest river in Sri Lanka. Its drainage basin is the largest in the country, and covers almost one-fifth of the total area of the island. The river reaches the Bay of Bengal on the southwestern side of Trincomalee Bay. The bay includes the first of a number submarine canyons, making Trincomalee one of the finest deep-sea harbors in the world.^[2] The river and its tributaries are dammed at several locations to allow irrigation in the dry zone, with almost 1,000 km² (386 sq mi) of land irrigated.^[3] Production of hydroelectricity from six dams of the Mahaweli system supplies more than 40% of Sri Lanka's electricity needs. One of the many sources of the river is the Kotmale Oya.^[4]

Malvathu River

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Malvathu River (Sinhala: මල්වතු ඔය, Tamil: அருவி ஆறு) is a 164 km (102 mi) long river in Sri Lanka, connecting the city ofAnuradhapura, which was the capital of the country for over 15 centuries, to the coast of Mannar. It currently ranks as the second longest river in the country, with a great historic significance. The northern part of the river, and sometimes the whole river, was once been known as Aruvi Aru'

Kelani River

The Kelani River is a 145-kilometre-long river in Sri Lanka. Ranking as the fourth longest river in the country, it stretches from the Sri Pada Mountain Range to Colombo. It supplies approximately 80% of the water used in Colombo. Wikipedia

Length: 145 km Source: Sri Pada Mouth: Indian Ocean Cities: Colombo

Mahaweli Ganga

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Mahaweli Ganga,  (Sinhalese: “Great Sandy River”), river, central and eastern Sri Lanka. At 208 mi (335 km) in length, it is Sri Lanka’s longest river. It rises on the Hatton Plateau on the western side of the island’s hill country, flows north through a tea- and rubber-growing region, and turns east near Kandy; it then turns north across the lowlands, receives its principal tributary, the Amban Ganga, and flows past Polonnaruwa to its mouth on Koddiyar Bay, 7 mi south of Trincomalee.

With its headwaters in Sri Lanka’s wet zone, the Mahaweli Ganga flows throughout the year, providing water for agriculture in the eastern dry zone. In the early 1970s a vast development project to increase the river’s usefulness for irrigation and generation of electricity was under way, under the auspices of the World Bank. It is scheduled for completion by about 1990.

Mahaweli River

A significant river in Sri Lanka the Mahaweli River is the country’s lifeblood in many ways as it serves both as a source of electricity and as a source of fertile land. The drainage basin for this river is incredibly large and covers an area that is almost equal to a fifth of the island’s entire size.

The Mahaweli is also the longest river in Sri Lanka and originates from the Hatton Plateau that is located on the Western side of the country’s hill side. From this point it proceeds to flow through an area that is dominated by tea and rubber growing takes a turn to the east before reaching the city of Kandy. It eventually passes through Trincomalee and ends up in the Bay of Bengal. From here onwards it still carries on in the form of a major submarine canyon which allows it to function as one of the finest deep sea harbours in the world.

The Mahaweli River plays a major role in Sri Lanka’s power generation as several parts of the river have been dammed in order to facilitate the creation of various hydro electricity power plants that generate a sizeable part of the countries electricity. It is for this reason that Sri Lanka’s primary source of power is through hydro-electricity.

Farming and agriculture also plays an important part in the country and it is here again that river has shown its dual purpose. The damming of the river has also provided water in numerous areas that has been siphoned off for irrigation purposes.

The Mahaweli River has always played an important role in Sri Lanka and it will continue to do so well in to the future.

Rivers in Sri Lanka

Kuru Ganga Villa – Kuruwita

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admin August 25, 2012Close to Colombo, Featured, Kuruwita

Location

KURU Ganga (KURU River) stream, starting as “Seetha Gangula” (Cold River) in the hills of “SRI PADA” (also known as ADAM’S PEAK), runs adjacent to the KURU Ganga Villa. KURU Ganga therefore provides a very clean, cold and safe stream of water for bathing to the visitors of KURU Ganga Villa, which makes the Villa a unique place for relaxing.

Kalu Ganga
River Kalu in Ratnapura
Origin	Adam's Peak
Mouth	Kalutara
Basin countries	Sri Lanka
Length	129 km (80 mi)
Source elevation	2,400 m (7,874 ft)
Mouth elevation	Sea level
Basin area	2,766 km2 (1,068 sq mi)
Left tributaries	Kukule River

Mahaweli river - Sri lanka's longest river

Friday, January 22, 2010

Mahaweli river - Sri lanka's longest river

Mahaweli is the largest river found in Sri lanka.It starts from the Hatton plateau on the western side of the island's hill country and ends in east at trincomalee district.This river is 335km long and it is a significant length,considering Sri lanka's size (maximum length of the country is 432km).It is said that Mahaweli river's drainage basin is almost 1/5th of the country in size!

River Mahawali does an outstanding job in nourishing the country by many means.It helps to gain electricity to the country(you may not know that Sri lanka gets considerable amount ot its electricity by Hydro-power)and supplies water for a huge area of agricultural lands.One of Sri lanka's largest irrigation projets is woven around this great river so,is named as "The Mahaweli development project."

During our childhood days we were taught about 4 great rivers arise from the central hills of the country that flow out towards the ocean and on their way to the ocean nurturing the country throughout..Those rivers were "Mahaweli,Kelani,Kalu and Walawe" rivers.

As Sri lanka is an agricultural land full of beautiful paddy fields ,water is our blood... and Mahaweli river is the best source of that blood for our mother nation.

want to know more about how Mahaweli river has been manipulated in our country? please visit
Mahaweli development project

Kelani River

Kelani Ganga or Kelani River is one of the main rivers in Sri Lanka. Although not the largest in the country, the river is considered highly important for the water requirements of Colombo. 

The starting point of the Kelani River is the Sri Pada mountain range whereby its travels through the hill country and ultimately flows in to the ocean at Colombo. The flow of the river changes during the monsoon period and the dry season. For instance, during monsoon the river flow is 800-1500 m³/s and during the dry season it is some 20-25 m³/s.

Kelani River has become the main source of living for many people living close by.  It is used for transportation, hydropower generation, fisheries, irrigation and sewage disposal. Furhermore, one of the main activities that take place near the Kelani River is sand extraction whereby 600-800,000 m³ of sand is being extracted on an annual basis. This activity has its many adverse affects and the results are already in the open. While sand mining has adverse effects, it is considered vital in terms of national economy. Furthermore, there are hundreds of people whose main livelihood is sand extraction. 

The Kelani temple positioned on the banks of the Kelani River is famous and considered a sacred site amongst local Buddhists. Furthermore, there are many people whose lives revolve around this great river which also adds immense beauty to the natural splendour of this unique island.  
Take time to visit the beauty of this magnificent river, along with the various attractions found within close proximity.

Rivers in Sri Lanka

Longest Rivers in Sri Lanka Name of River  Length  Mahaweli Ganga  335 km Aruvi Aru  164 km Kala Oya  148 km Kelani Ganga  145 km Yan Oya  142 km Deduru Oya  142 km Walawe Ganga  138 km Maduru Oya  135 km Maha Oya  134 km Kalu Ganga  129 km Kirindi Oya  117 km Kumbukkan Oya  116 km Menik Oya  114 km Gin Ganga  113 km Mi Oya  109 km Gal Oya  108 km   Rivers of Sri Lanka Rivers Mahavali Rever (Ganga) is the largest of the 103 river basins found in Sri Lanka. It covers about 16% of the island's total area. The river itself has a winding course, rising about 50 km south of Kandy and flowing north then north-east to the sea near Trincomalee covering a distance of 320 km. It is the only perennial river to cross the dry Zone. Sri Lanka’s all perenial revers are called Ganga,while seasonal streams are called Oya in Sinhala or Aru in Tamil. A number of rivers have now been developed both for irrigation and power. The Victoria project on Mahavali Ganga is one of the largest in Asia.