Reconstructed A9 highway and former rebel runway in north opens today

President Mahinda Rajapaksa will officially open the improved main A-9 highway and the reconstructed former rebel airstrip at Iranamadu in Kilinochchi today (15), Government sources said.

The 320 km A-9 road that connects Jaffna peninsula in the north to the central city of Kandy was reconstructed by the local contractors in two stages under the supervision of the Ministry of Ports and Highways. The state funded the reconstruction at a cost of Rs. 19.125 billion.

The road was fully opened in mid-2009 after the end of the war. However, the once busy highway was in a dilapidated condition. Reconstruction commenced in 2011 under the guidance of the President. The President will also declare open the runway at Iranamadu in Kilinochchi. Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) carried out the complete reconstruction of the former rebel runway. It has been widened to 25 metres and extended to 1,500 metres in length.

The new runway has been built to accommodate the landing of the biggest SLAF plane, a C-130. The runway, once used by the Tamil Tiger rebels that held power in the area before the end of the war to launch air attacks on the south, had been destroyed by the terrorists when the military captured the area, according to military sources.

The Government expects the runway to be developed as a domestic airport to boost the tourism and passenger transportation.