Rajarata

Rajarata was a historical region in the northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka that was once the center of a flourishing hydraulic civilization. This civilization relied on an elaborate system of irrigation for its agricultural productivity.12

The decline of Rajarata was brought about by several factors, including the depletion of the treasury due to foreign policy and wars, and the strain of maintaining Buddhist monuments. Crucially, the management of the irrigation system broke down when the traditional aristocracy lost authority, replaced by military officers who lacked the capacity or interest to maintain it. This led to the neglect and breaching of reservoirs and tanks, reducing cultivable land and forcing a population shift towards areas with more rainfall. The region eventually became a ruin of depopulated villages and overgrown jungle.21

In the 10th century, Rajarata was also annexed by the Cola empire as a province.3