Sri Lanka has obtained a state of the art tunnel boring machine for the construction of the Uma Oya project, Irrigation and Water Resources Management Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva says, The minister said machine would be used to bore a long tunnel to divert the Uma Oya water. He said the foreign and local engineers working in the project should be complimented because it was a massive project that would be a boon to many districts such as Badulla, Hambantota and Moneragala. He said that the Iranian government would extend a grant of US $ 450 million for the infrastructure development activities of the project and the Sri Lankan government would spend Rs. 9,000 million to develop the irrigational facilities. The entire project is expected to be completed in 2016.