Giritale Wewa or Giritale Tank (Sinhala: ගිරිතලේ වැව/ ගිරිතලේ ජලාශය), is a reservoir in Girithale in Polonnaruwa District, Sri Lanka.
History
The Giritatavapi or the Giritalawewa was constructed during the reign of King Aggabodhi II [(608-618 A.D.) Arumugam, 1969; Fernando, 1980; Ray, 1959]. This tank was fed by a branch of the Elahera (ancient Alisara) canal (Ray, 1959). Historical sources reveal that King Parakramabahu I (1153-1186 A.D.) restored or enlarged the work (Arumugam, 1969).
The present reservoir was restored in 1905 (Arumugam, 1969). It was improved and enlarged during the period 1949-1952 (Arumugam, 1969).
Reservoir
The catchment area serves as the main water source to the reservoir and in addition to that, the water of Amban Ganga comes to the reservoir through the Elahera Dam (Arumugam, 1969). The embankment of the reservoir is 518.16 m long and the water extends into an area of about 760 acres (Arumugam, 1969). The reservoir has 2 sluices and 1 spill.
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References
1) Arumugam, S., 1969. Water resources of Ceylon: its utilisation and development. Water Resources Board. p.241.
2) Fernando, A.D.N., 1980. Major ancient irrigation works of Sri Lanka. Journal of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 22, pp.1-24.
3) Ray, H.C. (Editor in chief), 1959. History of Ceylon: Vol. I: Part I. Ceylon University Press. Colombo. p.354
Location Map
This page was last updated on 28 March 2021
