SAARC Countries...

Sri Lanka

Official Name: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Commonly referred to as: Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon)
Term for Citizens: Sri Lankan(s)
Capital: Colombo, located on the southwestern coast.
Administrative Capital: Sri Jayewardenepura since 1982.

Society

Population: 14,848,364 (according to its 1981 census); 16,639,695 (estimated 1988). Average annual growth rate 1.37 %; average life expectancy 67.5 years (males 66 years, females 69 years); gender ratio 103.7 males to 100 females.
Ethnic Groups: Sinhalese 74 %; Tamil 18 %; Muslims 7 %; others (Burghers, Eurasians, Malay, Veddha) 1 %. The largest ethnic group is divided into low-country Sinhalese (in coastal areas) and Kandyan Sinhalese (more traditional upland dwellers, named after Kingdom of Kandy). The Tamils are divided into Sri Lankan Tamils (on island since early historic times) and Indian Tamils (brought in as plantation labour in the 19th century).
Languages: Sinhalese (official language); Tamil enjoys equal status with Sinhala as the official language since July 29, 1987. English is spoken in government and educated circles by about 10 % of the country’s population.
Education and Literacy: The country’s has a policy of compulsory education up to age thirteen, which is free in government schools. Sri Lanka's overall literacy rate is 88.6%, one of the highest in Asia. 
Religion: Sri Lanka is a predominantly Buddhist nation, with Buddhists making up 69 % of the population. Hindus number 15 %, Christians 8%, Muslims 8%, Sinhalese are generally Buddhist, while a majority of Tamils are Hindus. Burghers, Eurasians, and a minority of Sinhalese and Tamils profess Christianity. The Moors are adherents of Islam.
Health and Welfare: Sri Lanka has a nationwide health care system, including maternity services provided by government. The country has successfully eradicated smallpox; the incidence of malaria is declining. Traditional medicine Ayurveda, supported by government, enjoys great credibility.
Location and Physical Features: Sri Lanka is a pear-shaped island country located in the Indian Ocean, 29 kilometres off the southeastern coast of India. It lies between 5O 55' and 9O 55' north of the equator and between the eastern longitudes 79O 42' and 81O 52'. Sri Lanka’s land area, which is remarkably varied, totals 65,610 sq. km, of which its land area is 64,740 square kilometres. The island has a length of 445 km. and a breadth of 225 km.

Topography 

The Sri Lankan island is irregular and dissected. Mountainous mass regions, including a central massif towards the south of the centre characterise the south, with the highest elevation beingPidurutalagala (2,524 meters). Coastal belts of varying width extend from the seashore to foothills of the central massif. The northern half has rolling plains relieved by isolated ridges. Mahaweli Ganga (860 kilometers) is the Sri Lanka’s longest river, flowing in a northeasterly direction. About 40 % of the island is under forest. The island nation is blessed by nature with beautiful tropical palm-fringed beaches, verdant vegetation, numerous lagoons, ancient monuments and a many other places of interest. Climate and Seasons: The Sri Lankan plains experience typically tropical climate with an average temperature of 27OC in Colombo. In the higher areas, temperatures are cooler with the mercury going down to 16OC (at an altitude of nearly 2,000 metres). Bright, sunny warm days are the norm throughout the year. The southwest monsoon brings rain mainly from May to October to the western, southern and central regions of the island, while the northeast monsoon rains occur in the northern and eastern regions in December and March. Rainfall is uneven and divides country climatically into a wet zone comprising southwestern quarter (250 cm) and dry zone (120 to 190 cm) on the rest of the island

A Brief History of Sri Lanka
Archaeological evidence reveals the island of Sri Lanka to have been inhabited up to 130,000 years ago, attested to by archaeological ruins and other evidence. Paleolithic human settlements dated to that period have been discovered at excavations in several cave sites in the country’s Western Plains and the South-western face of the Central Hills. Paleo-anthropology has shown that burial rites and certain decorative artifacts exhibit similarities between the first inhabitants of the island and the early inhabitants of southern India. One of the first written references to the island is found in the Ramayana. The main written accounts of the country's history are the Buddhist chronicles of Mahavansa,Dipavansa and Chulavansa.
The Ramayana describes Shri Rama (one of the incarnations of Lord Vishnu) invading the island through the Mannar causeway with the help of his Vanara Army, to rescue his abducted wife, Sita, from Ravana, the Rakshasa emperor of Sri Lanka of that era. TheRamayana descrtibes the construction of the Rama Bridge upon Rama's instructions by his Vanara army, engineered by Nala, son of the architect-deity Visvakarman. It helped Rama to reach Sri Lanka to defeat and slay Ravana. Ample archaeological evidence has been found that are supportive of the fact that Ravana did indeed rule over the island from his capital. NASA satellite photographs confirm the existence of this ancient bridge.
A majority of present day Sri Lankans are of Indian origin. The earliest chronicles, theDipavamsa and Mahavamsa say that before the migration of the people from India, tribes ofYakshas (demons) and Nagas (cobras) inhabited the island. These names might refer to the respective communities living in the island.
Rama's Bridge is a chain of limestone shoals, between the islands of Mannar, near northwestern Sri Lanka, and Rameswaram, off the southeastern coast of India. The bridge is 30 miles (48 km) long and bifurcates the Gulf of Mannar (southwest) from the Palk Strait(northeast). Some of the sandbanks are dry and the sea in the area is very shallow, being only 3 ft to 30 ft (1 m to 10 m) deep and this stretch was passable on foot as late as the 15th century until storms deepened the channel. A ferry links the island and port of Rameswaramin India with Talaimannar in Sri Lanka; the Pamban Bridge links Rameswaram island with mainland India.
The arrival of prince Vijaya and his followers from India is a milestone in Sri lanka’s history.Yakshas already inhabited the island when Vijaya arrived. He took as his consort Kuveni, the queen of these people, who bore a son and daughter. Successive immigrants from both North and South India followed, and intermixed with the indigenous Vedda people.
Buddhism, Sri Lanka’s dominant faith today, came from the India in the 3rd century BC. TheBhikkhu Mahendra, son of the renowned Indian Emperor Ashoka, was sent to Sri Lanka as a missionary and is said to have converted the then Sinhalese king Devanampiyatissa atMihintale. The Sinhalese population at large subsequently became Buddhists.
The country's written history is almost exclusively Sinhalese-Buddhist, but Tamil presence is noted throughout the country's written history since the earliest times, in the chronicles. There is no clearly established date of their arrival on the island, though. Wars between the Sinhalese and Tamils of Sri Lanka do not find mention, but there are reports of conflicts between the Sinhalese and South Indian kingdoms that invaded Sri Lanka on several occasions because of the prosperity of the country. Parts of the island, especially areas close to India, were ruled at times by South Indian dynasties such as the Cholas, the Pandyas, theCheras and the Pallavas. The island was also invaded and ruled by kings of Kalinga (present-day Indian state of Orissa) and Malay Straits. Occasionally, South Indian kings were expelled from the island by Sinhalese rulers; the most famous victory is of Sinhalese princeDutugemunu over the Tamil king Elara of Anuradhapura in 161 BC. The Sinhalese island has seen many kingdoms with their own capitals over the centuries, often simultaneously. At least by the 13th century BC, a Tamil kingdom with the capital Jaffna had been established in the North, but it did not last long.
Sri Lanka was known to the Greeks and the Romans as Taprobane – probably afterTambapanni, and to the Persians and Arabs as Serendib. Cinnamon, native to Sri Lanka, was used in ancient Egypt in about 1500 BC, suggesting possible trading links. After the Arab conquest of the Middle East, Muslim traders too visited the island. Ibn Batuta visited the island in the 14th century.

European Colonial Rule

European colonial rule over Sri lanka began with the arrival of the Portuguese in 1505. The island then comprised of three autonomous kingdoms, namely Yarlpanam (Anglicised Jaffna) in the north, Kandy in the central hills and Kotte at the Western coast. The Dutch arrived in the 17th century. During Portuguese and Dutch rule of coastal areas, the interior, hilly region of the island remained independent, with its capital in Kandy. Britain ousted Holland as the colonial power in 1796, with the coastal areas becoming a crown colony in 1802. After the fall of the Kandy kingdom in 1815, the British unified the island for administrative purposes in1818. The struggle for independence began in the 1930s, under the leadership of the Ceylon National Congress (CNC) founded in 1919. The Youth Leagues opposed the 'Ministers' Memorandum' which asked the colonial authority to increase the powers of the board of ministers, instead of moving toward independence.

Independence

Sri Lanka (or Ceylon) played an important role in World War II as a front-line British base against the Japanese, leading to more pressure for independence. As Ceylon, the island received dominion status in the British Commonwealth in 1948. Its first prime minister wasDon Stephen Senanayake. In 1972, the country became a republic, and the name was changed to Sri Lanka.
Government: The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a free, independent and sovereign nation. A system of administration through provincial councils was introduced in 1988. Legislative power is exercised by Parliament, elected by universal franchise on a proportional representation basis. The President, who is also elected by the people, exercises the executive power of the people, including defence.
Economy
 Sri Lanka is primarily an agricultural country. The chief crop is rice in which the country is almost self-sufficient. Tea, rubber and coconut are other important agricultural crops, with tea being a major foreign exchange earner. Besides, other crops of importance are cocoa and spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, pepper and cloves. Fruit and vegetables, native to both tropical and temperate regions, grow well in Sri Lanka. It is also a major exporter of precious and semi-precious stones.
Tourism is an important industry, while manufacturing in Sri Lanka has seen a rapid growth in industries making export goods such as petroleum products, leather goods, readymade garments and electronic equipment.
Economic parameters
GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $87.15 billion
Per capita income: $4,300.
Real growth rate: 5%.
Inflation: 11.2%.
Unemployment: 8.4%.
Arable land: 14%.
Labour force: 8.08 million
Services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (approx.).
Transportation: Railways: total: 1,508 km (2002). Highways: total: 96,695 km; paved: 91,860 km; unpaved: 4,835 km (1999). Waterways: 430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft. Ports and harbours: Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee. Airports: 15 (2002).
Sri Lanka’s exports were approximately $6.442 billion (2005 estimates), mainly of: textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish. Its imports for the same period stood at roughly $8.37 billion of textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and transportation equipment. The country’s major trading partners are the US, UK, India, Germany, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Iran, Japan and Malaysia.
Industry in Sri Lanka comprises mainly of processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles; cement and petroleum refining. The country is fairly well endowed in natural resources like tone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, and hydropower.
With an economy of $18.4 billion (est. August 2004), and a per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of about $950, Sri Lanka has enjoyed strong growth rates in recent years. The government began to shun its earlier socialist orientation from 1977. Since then, policies of deregulation, privatisation, and opening up of the economy to international competition have been in vogue. Sri Lanka’s ethnic crisis, which erupted in 1983, precipitated an economic slowdown.
Increased privatisation, reform, and a stress on export-oriented growth have aided a revival in the economy's performance, taking GDP growth to 7% in 1993. Economic growth has been uneven in the ensuing years as the economy had to grapple with a multitude of global and domestic economic and political challenges. The December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami caused extensive damage in Sri Lanka. The human and environmental tragedy was enormous: over 30,000 people were killed and another 500,000 were displaced, and the bulk of the coastline was affected, leaving most fishing fleets destroyed.
A lot hinges on the peace process for Sri Lanka's economic health, and continued policy reforms in fiscal discipline and management. The government looks to an ambitious information and technology project and also hopes to take advantage of Sri Lanka's strategic location on shipping routes, make use of the Indo-Lanka Free Trade Agreement, and sign free trade agreements with other countries to achieve regional trading hub status.
The service sector is the largest component of GDP (54%). It has seen a strong expansion. Public administration and defense expenditures have remained steady. Manufacturing accounts for about 16% of GDP. Colombo also boasts one of the most modern stock exchanges in the region, and the Sri Lankan Government offers a range of tax and other incentives to attract potential investors.

Places of Interest

Sri Lanka's capital until recent times, Colombo, is a fascinating city, encompassing a comfortable blend of east and west, as also for a cosy mixture of the past and present. It is still the commercial centre of the country. Situated 34 km. from the International Airport, Colombo has been a flourishing seaport for centuries. It today bustles with busy activity commercial and banking activities and shopping areas. Attractions in Colombo worth seeing are: Buddhists temples, Hindu temples, mosques, churches, the Parliament building, parks, zoo, museums and art galleries. 
Anuradhapura: Sri Lanka's first capital, founded in the 5th century BC is 206 km. from Colombo. Attractions: The Sacred Bo Tree, Abhayagiri Dagaba, Jetavanaramaya, Brazen Palace, Thuparama Dagaba, Samadhi Buddha, Kuttam Pokuna and Mirisavati Dagaba. 
Mihintale: 11 km. east of Anuradhapura is regarded as the cradle of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. The rock is dotted with shrines and rock dwellings. A grand stairway of 1840 steps made of granite slabs, 5 metres wide, leads to the summit with its splendid view of the surrounding countryside
Polonnaurwa: The Island’s medieval capital (11th to 13th century AD) is situated 216 km. from Colombo and rose to fame after the decline of Anuradhapura. The largest of the man made reservoirs, the huge Parakrama Samudra, is larger in size than the Colombo harbour. One can also see the ruins of the King's Council Chamber, the Royal Citadel, the Kumara Pokuna, Royal Pavilion, the Vatadage Relic House lavished with moonstones, guardstones and sculptured railing, Kiri Vehera - the best preserved of all Sri Lanka's un-restored dagabas; Gal Vihare - the most impressive sculptures are the colossal Buddha images carved on the face of a granite boulder. The recumbent Buddha measures 14 metres and the standing figure is 7 metres in height. 
Sigiriya: This rock fortress was built by king Kasyapa in the 5th century A.D. and was a royal citadel for more than 18 years. In a sheltered pocket, approached by a spiral stairway, are the famous frescoes. The summit of the rock, with an area of nearly one hectare was the site of the palace, the outer wall of which was built on the very brink of the precipice.
Yapahuwa: An ancient fortress and capital built in the year 1301, approximately 145 km. from Colombo, Yapahuwa is a rock rising to a height of 90 metres. Many traces of the ancient battle defences can still be seen, while an ornamental stairway remains its biggest showpiece.
Aluvihara: 26 km. from Kandy is the Matale district. The place houses an ancient rock temple of great significance in the history of Buddhism. The Buddhist canon and its commentaries, which were until then handed down orally, were written for the first time at Aluvihara Temple.