Hands and feet off Parakrama Samudraya-by LAKSIRI WARNAKULA Source:Island I was shocked when I saw the pictures the other day. How could they come up with such an idea? And it is an act of sacrilege, too, causing harm to an object that should be protected, and even venerated, to my mind. It is a majestic symbol showing our ancient heritage of irrigation engineering and the wisdom of our kings. And its bund is not for breaking and bulldozing to suit the whims and fancies of some, who see concrete and walkways as signs of development, carried out even at the expense of our proud heritage. It, in any circumstances, shouldn’t be on the ‘bucket list’ of short-sighted, self-promoting bigwigs, chosen for destruction in the guise of development. Polonnaruwa means two things to us: marvels of architecture and irrigation engineering of yore and then, the paddy and the farmer. Now, ...

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