Where is the balance between
conservation and development?
By Nizla Naizer
Students and residents help conduct conservation work on the Abhayagiri Dagaba |
Sri Lanka may be a relatively small nation in size, but the magnitude and significance of our ancient civilisation is undeniable as the remnants of an era gone past stand tall and proud in the backdrop of the Anuradhapura sky, or on the summit of the Sigiriya Rock. However, these civilisations ran far and wide, and The Bottom Line caught up with the Department of Archaeology to find out how the key question of conservation while allowing for development has emerged within the dry zone.
The question of control
“We estimate that Sri Lanka has around 250,000 historically important sites,” Archaeology Department Director General Dr. Senarath Dissanayake explained, “But the Department of Archaeology have the resources to handle and control only 1,700 of these.” Among the 1,700, the Department directly handles 115 monuments while a 1,600 are privately owned sites that are observed by the state’s archaeologists.
“Many of these 250,000 historical sites are among the people, in between homes, in temple grounds and in un-cleared jungles,” he explained, “We need department staff to safeguard these sites and the number required will be impractical and impossible.” The Department at present has 400 staff, 250 of whom are graduates and the rest comprising of technical officers and staff.
The Dutch Fort in Jaffna |
In a bid to involve the people in whose doorsteps these ruins exist, the department has commenced awareness programmes with a mobile exhibition unit traversing the country. “The mobile exhibition has become a big hit with requests for its arrival from many locations,” Dr. Dissanayake informed, “There is a lot of enthusiasm and we need to encourage that feeling of protecting what is ours among the people.”
So, how does the conservation actually translate to the people getting involved? “We carry out several successful Public Private Partnerships with the people of the country where monuments that are privately owned are conserved with the assistance of the land owners themselves.” Most often the monks in the area will provide the wood, brick and provisions required by the Archaeology Department staff, who then supply the labour and the technical know-how to preserve a historical site.
The department also works with other government institutions such as the Department of Irrigation, Railways and the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) to protect the historically important sites that fall within their purview. The CEA had also contributed Rs. 5 million to conserve land that is of historical value in the last year.
Conservation and
development
With recent claims that historical sites in the dry zone are being abused by unauthorised development, Archaeology Department Director General Dr. Senarath Dissanayake was quick to explain that the dry zone has one of the highest historical site densities in the region. “Every square kilometre, you find 6-10 historically important sites,” he informed, “If you try to conserve and protect them all, you will curb development in that area completely.”
How do you then find the balance between conservation and development? He explained that in many instances development is allowed to take place because it is impossible to improve the lives of the people in that area without it. “We cannot ask an individual to build his personal quarters 400 yards away from his home because there was an ancient wall running through the garden,” he pointed out. “The region is full of ruins, but we must compromise.”
New approaches to
funding constraints
Dr. Dissanayake explained that like many countries across the globe, Sri Lanka too faces funding constraints for research, excavation and conservation of historical sites each year. “We are provided with a recurrent expenditure of Rs.300 million and a capital allowance of Rs.36 million by the Treasury,” he informed, “But that is woefully insufficient to carry out conservation and unearth new sites at the same time, however, the country has other priorities and we must look at other means.”
“The clergy has been very supportive towards the protection of these cultural and religious sites,” he explained, “And in 2008, they contributed Rs.50 million towards conservation.” Also, a grant of Rs.750 million provided by the Netherlands towards the resurrection of historically important Dutch sites in the last few years has been one among the few international grants. Sri Lanka has seven World Heritage Sites, declared by UNESCO and six of these are ‘culturally important’ sites which include Anuradhapura, Sigiriya, Dambulla, Polonnaruwa, Kandy and Galle Fort, however, he explained that grants by the UNESCO to conserve and resurrect these sites, depends on the need and urgency and most often, the priority is elsewhere.
Changing the law
Along with contributions made by international organisations and private parties within the country, he informed that the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and National Heritage is looking towards changing the legislation to enable more money being generated through the visitors of these sites. The Department of Archaeology and the institutes under its purview are currently controlled by the 1980 No 7 Cultural Act. “With the initiative taken by Minister of Cultural Affairs Lakshman Yapa Abeywardene, within a couple of month we intend to revise the law to enable the Department of Archaeology to generate some money through the sale of tickets to local visitors, sell souvenirs and publications among others.”
At present local visitors to many of the historical sites including the World Heritage sites in the Cultural Triangle (Kandy, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya) are not charged a fee, except for Sigiriya where a nominal amount is charged per ticket for a fund then used to conserve and maintain the site. However, foreign tourists are subjected to a larger fee, with Rs.5,000 charged from each for a pass that ensures a comprehensive tour of the Cultural Triangle including the many museums run by the Department within.
Conservation of the Cultural Triangle (except for Kandy, which is handled by a separate governing body) is handled by the Central Cultural Fund (CCF) which is made up of the money collected from the international visitors to the site.
New among the ancient
The current project generating interest and enthusiasm among the researchers and excavation officers is the Rajagala ruins in the Ampara District. “We’ve been excavating this monument for the last three years and with over 1,600 monuments this site is larger than the Mihintale compound and in the same scale as Anuradhapura.”
The thickly forested area of Rajagala overlooking the village of Bakiella, 5km north of Ampara, has a history dating back to the 1st Century BC where the rock was the ancient dwelling of the monks in the area. Ancient inscriptions also reveal that the ashes of Arahat Mihindu and his disciple Itthiya were enshrined in a stupa within the compound. Along with preserved stone carvings and antiquities, Rajagala will be of tremendous religious importance once the excavation and preservation is complete and is sure to draw more domestic and international tourists to the eastern region, which is set to benefit from the post-war development boon. The site will be open to the public once excavation is complete.
The department has also opened up over six new museums to house religious and historical artefacts in the last year including the Yapahuwa, Kaludiya Pokuna Mihintale, Pidurangala and Rajangani museums. Under the Uthuru Vasanthaya drive for development in the North, close to eight archaeological sites have also been selected for protection including the iconic Jaffna Fort and the Duthc Nilaveli Catholic Church.
“There is still insufficient enthusiasm among the masses to protect what is rightfully their heritage,” Dr. Dissanayake informed, “We are now working with the Department of Education to create a syllabus that inculcates a love for our heritage from a primary level.”
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