Sri Lanka

National Day : 04th February

Facts and Figures

Official Name : The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Size : 65,610 sq km
Capital : Sri Jayawardenepura
Commercial Capital : Colombo
Population : 20,483000
Population Density : 327 person per sq km
Life expectancy at birth : 75.1
Literacy Rate : 95.6% .
Annual Per Capita GNP : US$ 3191
Annual Per Capita GDP : US$ 3280

Industries : Processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco.
Agriculture - Products : Rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, roots, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides and meat. Etc..
Unemployment rate : 4.4 %
Currency : Sri Lanka follows decimal currency system in Rupees (Rs.) and cents (Cts.) with 100 cents equal to a rupee.

Geographical Location : Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean between latitudes 5°55' and 9° 55' north of the equator and between the eastern longitudes 79° 42' and 81° 52'. The Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar separate Sri Lanka from India. The Arabian Sea lies to the west, the Bay of Bengal to the northeast, and the Indian Ocean to the south.

History : Buddhism was introduced in about the mid-third century B.C., and a great civilization developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (kingdom from circa 200 B.C. to circa A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty established a Tamil kingdom in northern Sri Lanka. The coastal areas of the island were controlled by the Portuguese in the 16th century and by the Dutch in the 17th century. The island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972.

The Land : The total land area of Sri Lanka is 65,610 sq. km. and is astonishingly varied. A length of 435 km (270 miles) North to South and breadth of 240 km (150 miles) East to West encompass beautiful tropical beaches, verdant vegetation, ancient monuments and a thousand delights to please all tastes. The land of Sri Lanka can be divided into three geographic zones that correspond to elevation: the central highlands, the lowland plains, and the coastal belt.

Climate and Seasons : In the lowlands the climate is typically tropical with an average temperature of 27°C in Colombo. In the higher elevations it can be quite cool with temperatures going down to 16°C at an altitude of nearly 2,000 metres. Bright, sunny warm days are the rule and are common even during the height of the monsoon - climatically Sri Lanka has no off season. The south west monsoon brings rain mainly from May to July to the western, southern and central regions of the island, while the north-east monsoon rains occur in the northern and eastern regions in December and January

Government : Sri Lanka, is a Democracy. Legislative power is exercised by a Parliament, elected by universal franchise on proportional representation basis. A President, who is also elected by the people, exercises executive power. Sri Lanka enjoys a multi party system, and the people vote to elect a new government every six years.

Official Languages : Sinhala and Tamil are official languages. Sinhala is the language of the majority of Sinhalese people, Tamil is spoken by the Tamil minority. English is the link language.