Polgahawela is a town located in north western

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. It is most notable for being a major railway junction. Polgahawela is situated in the North Western Province of Sri Lanka, and is located approximately north-east from the capital city of

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

; from

Kandy Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka located in the Central Province. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills ...

; from

Kurunegala Kurunegala ( si, කුරුණෑගල, ta, குருணாகல்) is a major city in Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of the North Western Province and the Kurunegala District. Kurunegala was an ancient royal capital for 50 years, fr ...

; and from

Bandaranayake International Airport Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) ( si, බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළ, translit=Bandāranāyaka Jātyantara Guvantoṭupaḷa; ta, பண்டாரநாயக்க � ...

. It is the location of an important railway junction in Sri Lanka Railways' network, connecting the

Main Line Mainline, ''Main line'', or ''Main Line'' may refer to: Transportation Railway * Main line (railway), the principal artery of a railway system * Main line railway preservation, the practice of operating preserved trains on an operational railw ...

, which runs from

Badulla Badulla ( si, බදුල්ල, ta, பதுளை) is the capital and the largest city of Uva Province situated in the lower central hills of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of Uva Province and the Badulla District. Geography Badulla is ...

and the

Northern Line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, two ...

, which runs through to the northern port of

Kankesanthurai Kankesanthurai (, , lit. ''Port Kankesan''), colloquially known as KKS, is a port suburb, fishing division and resort hub of the Jaffna District, Northern Province, Sri Lanka. Formerly an electoral district, Kankesanthurai is home to the Kankesan ...

Railway station

Polgahawela's railway station is at the centre of the town and lies at the main junction of the

and the

. The town is notable for a major

railway accident Classification of railway accidents, both in terms of cause and effect, is a valuable aid in studying rail (and other) accidents to help to prevent similar ones occurring in the future. Systematic investigation for over 150 years has led to the r ...

that occurred in 2005.

Neighbouring stations

Pothuhera Allawwa Polgahawela Panaliiya Thismalpola Rambukkana

Notable people

Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don Albert Malcolm Ranjith ( Sinhala: පටබැඳිගේ දොන් ඇල්බට් මැල්කම් රංජිත්) (born 15 November 1947), often known simply as Malcolm Ranjith or Albert Malcolm Ranjith is a ...

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

and a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

, was born here. *

Gregory Shantha Kumara Francis Gregory Shantha Kumar Francis ( B.Th., PGDip.P&CC), was an Anglican Bishop of Kurunegala, Sri Lanka. Gregory Shantha Kumar Francis was born in 1955 in the village of Polgahawela, Sri Lanka. He is an upcountry Tamil, and fluent in Sinhala, Engl ...

, the

Bishop of Kurunegala The Diocese of Kurunegala is a diocese of the Church of Ceylon (which is part of the Anglican Communion). The See was erected in 1950 from that of the Diocese of Colombo, as one of two dioceses of the Church of England in Ceylon. On 17 Decemb ...

, was born here

References

Populated places in North Western Province, Sri Lanka {{NorthWesternLK-geo-stub

Railway station

Neighbouring stations

Notable people

See also

References