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