The Mahaweli Multipurpose Project was inaugurated at Polgolla in the Central Province by then Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike on January 8, 1976.Thousands of acres in the North Central, North Western, Central and Eastern Provinces would be brought under plough under this project.

The Kalu Ganga-Moragahakanda reservoir is six times larger than the Parakrama Samudraya constructed centuries ago by King Parakramabahu I.Realising the long-felt need for water in the country’s agricultural heartland, the Kalu Ganga-Moragahakanda Reservoir Project, the biggest irrigation project in the country, was brought forward by the present government under the guidance of President Maithripala Sirisena. The mega project would provide a long-lasting solution to water scarcity in five districts, among other benefits.

The project proposal was stagnating for decades until President Sirisena, as the then Mahaweli Development Minister, took measures to revive it in 2007. The project included the construction of two giant reservoirs: Moragahakanda and Kalu Ganga. The Moragahakanda Reservoir was commissioned by the President in January.President Maithripala Sirisena unveiled a granite Buddha statue the near the reservoir and offered a tray of flowers amidst chanting of seth pirith by the Maha Sangha.

The President also inaugurated the operation of the Moragahakanda hydroelectric power station, which would add 25 megawatts of power to the national grid. He also declared the Moragahakanda reservoir as the Kulasinghe reservoir at the ceremony.