Central Highlands Are Critical, Says President

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Central Highlands, often called the country’s natural heart, are facing a deepening crisis that threatens not only the environment, but the nation’s water security, economy, and way of life.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, drawing attention to what he described as one of the country’s most pressing challenges, warned that the degradation of the Central Highlands has reached a critical point and demands urgent national action.

Referring to a recent survey report presented by the Asian Development Bank, the President said the findings provide a stark picture of the past, present, and future of the Central Highlands if current trends continue unchecked.

The report, he noted, paints an alarming scenario, one in which soil erosion becomes so severe that only exposed rock remains, wiping out the land’s ability to sustain ecosystems, agriculture, and water resources.

The President also highlighted the growing danger facing reservoirs in the hill country, many of which are at risk of being filled with silt and mud, severely reducing their capacity and effectiveness.

Despite occupying just 13.6 percent of Sri Lanka’s total land area, the Central Highlands receive an extraordinary 76 percent of the country’s total rainfall. 

This imbalance, the President stressed, places immense responsibility on the region to act as the nation’s primary natural water storage system.

However, that system is now weakening.

“When we examine the mountain peaks,” President Dissanayake said, “we see that the soil layers have become extremely thin.”

Soil, he reminded, is the most effective natural medium for storing water. Healthy land absorbs rainfall, retains it, and then releases it gradually, forming streams, springs, waterfalls, and eventually rivers that sustain both people and agriculture across the island.

This natural process is now under threat.

The President underscored the national importance of the Central Highlands, pointing out that all 103 major rivers and tributaries in Sri Lanka originate from this region. From the hilltops, water flows outward, supporting life in distant regions far removed from the mountains themselves.

“For this reason,” he said, “protecting the Central Highlands is absolutely critical.”