The Western Province ( si, බස්නාහිර පළාත ''Basnāhira Paḷāta''; ta, மேல் மாகாணம் ''Mael Mākāṇam'') is one of the nine
provinces of Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, provinces ( si, පළාත, translit=Paḷāta; ta, மாகாணம், translit=Mākāṇam) are the first level administrative division. They were first established by the British rulers of Ceylon in 1833. Over the next ...
, the first level
administrative division
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the
13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established
provincial councils. Western Province is the most densely populated province in the country and is home to the legislative capital
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte as well as to
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 m ...
, the nation's administrative and business center.
History
Parts of present-day Western Province were part of the pre-colonial
Kingdom of Kotte
The Kingdom of Kotte ( si, කෝට්ටේ රාජධානිය, Kottay Rajadhaniya), named after its capital, Kotte, was a Sinhalese kingdom that flourished in Sri Lanka during the 15th century.
Kotte, under the rule of Ming-backed ...
. The province then came under
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
,
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
and
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
control. In 1815 the British gained control of the entire island of
Ceylon. They divided the island into three ethnic based administrative structures: Low Country Sinhalese, Kandyan Sinhalese and Tamil. The Western Province was part of the Low Country Sinhalese administration. In 1833, in accordance with the recommendations of the
Colebrooke-Cameron Commission, the ethnic based administrative structures were unified into a single administration divided into five geographic provinces. The districts of Chilaw,
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 m ...
,
Kalutara
Kalutara ( si, කළුතර, ta, களுத்துறை) or Kalutota is a major city in Kalutara District, Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is also the administrative capital of Kalutara District. It is located approximately south o ...
,
Puttalam
Puttalam ( si, පුත්තලම, translit=Puttalama; ta, புத்தளம், translit=Puttaḷam) is the largest town in Puttalam District, North Western Province, Sri Lanka. Puttalam is the administrative capital of the Puttalam Di ...
, Seven Korales (present day
Kurunegala District
Kurunegala is a district in North Western Province, Sri Lanka. Consists of and consists 30 Divisional Secretariats, 1610 Grama Niladari Divisions and 4476 total Villages. It consists of 14 Electorate Divisions, 02 Municipal Council, 19 Urban ...
), Three Korales, Four Korales and Lower Bulatgama (present day
Kegalle District
Kegalle is a district in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. It is one of 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary ( ...
) formed the new Western Province. Chilaw District, Puttalam District and Seven Korales were transferred to the newly created
North Western Province in 1845. Three Korales, Four Korales and Lower Bulatgama were transferred to the newly created
Sabaragamuwa Province in 1889.
It is planned to create a planned Megacity under the
Western Region Megapolis
The Western Region Megapolis is an urban planning, zoning, and development area stretching from Negombo in the north to Beruwala in the south. It is designed to create a megapolis in Sri Lanka's Western Province by 2030.
The plan was created by ...
Plan in the Western Province designed by
Surbana. Originally initiated in 2004 by
Ranil Wickremesinghe
Ranil Wickremesinghe ( si, රනිල් වික්රමසිංහ, ta, ரணில் விக்கிரமசிங்க; born 24 March 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician who is the current president of Sri Lanka since 21 July 2 ...
it was stopped after his election defeat and was restarted again after his return to power in 2015. The project plans to merge Colombo, Gampaha and Kalutara districts and introduce
zoning
Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...
Geography and climate
Western Province is located in the southwest of Sri Lanka. It has an area of .
The province is surrounded by the
Laccadive Sea
The Laccadive Sea or Lakshadweep Sea is a body of water bordering India (including its Lakshadweep islands), the Maldives, and Sri Lanka. It is located to the southwest of Karnataka, to the west of Kerala and to the south of Tamil Nadu. This war ...
to the west,
North Western Province to the north,
Sabaragamuwa Province to the east and the
Southern Province to the south.
The Western Province is vulnerable to recurrent flooding as a result of an increase in average rainfall coupled with heavier rainfall events, with knock-on impacts on the infrastructure, utility supply, and the urban economy of the Province. As the most urbanised province in Sri Lanka, these climate events pose a number of problems due to the rapid urban growth the province has undergone.
Administrative divisions
Districts
The Western Province is divided into three
administrative districts
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
, 40
Divisional Secretary's Division
The districts of Sri Lanka are divided into administrative sub-units known as ''divisional secretariats''. These were originally based on the feudal counties, the ''korale''s and ''rata''s. They were formerly known as 'D.R.O. Divisions' after the ...
s (DS Divisions) and 2,505
Grama Niladhari
''Grama Niladhari'' (''village officers'') ( si, ග්රාම නිලධාරී) is a Sri Lankan public official appointed by the central government to carry out administrative duties in a ''grama niladhari'' division, which is a sub-un ...
Divisions (GN Divisions).
Major population centres
Demographics
Population
The Western Province's population was 5,821,710 in 2012.
[ The majority of the population are Sinhalese, with a minority ]Sri Lankan Moor
Sri Lankan Moors ( ta, இலங்கைச் சோனகர், translit=Ilaṅkaic Cōṉakar; si, ලංකා යෝනක, translit=Lanka Yonaka; formerly Ceylon Moors; colloquially referred to as Sri Lankan Muslims) are an ethnic minorit ...
and Sri Lankan Tamil population.
Ethnicity
Religion
Economy
The Western province provides the highest contribution to the Gross Domestic Product
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is oft ...
contributing 41.2% of the Provincial Gross Domestic Product(PGDP) and has a nominal PGDP growth rate of 5.8% as of 2015. Agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...
only made up 1.7% of the GDP the lowest among the nine provinces while Industrial sector made up 34.6% the highest in the country and service sector represented 56.5%.
The province is undergoing rapid development with several of the largest infrastructure development projects happening in the province such as the Colombo International Financial City
Colombo International Financial City ( si, කොළඹ ජාත්යන්තර මූල්ය නගරය, translit=Koḷam̆ba Jātyantara Mūlya Nagaraya) is a special economic zone and International Financial Centre located in C ...
(CIFC) which is an International Financial Zone and the Western Region Megapolis Planning Project(WRMPP) Western province is also undergoing a major real estate and construction boom with residential and commercial buildings and skyscrapers changing the skylines of cities such as Colombo and Rajagiriya
Rajagiriya is part of the Sri Lanka's administrative capital of Sri Jayawardenapura. A fairly large suburb bordering Colombo, Rajagiriya lies between Borella and Ethul Kotte, straddling Parliament Road.
History
The area was originally known ...
. Several major residential, office
An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific du ...
and hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
buildings as well as resorts and malls are either proposed or under construction.
The Colombo Harbour
The Port of Colombo (known as Port of Kolomtota during the early 14th Century Kotte Kingdom) is the largest and busiest port in Sri Lanka and the Indian Ocean. Located in Colombo, on the southwestern shores on the Kelani River, it serves as an i ...
is also a major driver of economic growth being the busiest port in South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...
. It has both privately run and state owned terminals and is being expanded.
Education
Almost all the premier educational institutions in the island are located in the Western Province. Universities in the province includes the University of Colombo
(Buddhih Sarvatra Bhrajate)
, mottoeng = ''Wisdom Enlightens''
, established =
, endowment = LKR 1.461 billion , University of Kelaniya
Pannaya Parisujjhati
, mottoeng = Self-purification is by insight
, established = 1875 Vidyalankara Pirivena1959 Vidyalankara University
, type = Public
, endowment =
, adminis ...
, University of Moratuwa
(''Vidyaayev Sharvadhanam'')
, motto_lang = Sanskrit
, mottoeng = Wisdom is all Wealth
, established =
, type = Public
, chancellor = K. K. Y. W. Perera
, vice_chancellor = N. ...
, University of Sri Jayewardenepura
''Vijja Uppattam Setta''
, mottoeng = Among all that arise, knowledge is the greatest
, established =
, undergrad = 14,750
, postgrad = 3560
, administrative_staff = 3950
, cit ...
, Open University, Sri Lanka
"The Open University of Sri Lanka" (OUSL; si, ශ්රී ලංකා විවෘත විශ්වවිද්යාලය, ta, இலங்கை திறந்த பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a national universit ...
, Buddhist and Pali University of Sri Lanka
The Buddhist and Pali University of Sri Lanka is a Buddhist university in Homagama, Sri Lanka. It was founded in 1981 and is organized in two faculties.
Objectives
The objectives that were fundamental to the establishment of the university in ...
, , National Institute of Business Management and the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology. Having the highest population in all the provinces, Western Province has the largest number of schools in the country, which includes national
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, c ...
, provincial, private and international schools.
Transportation
Expressways in Western Province
* Southern Expressway
* Outer Circular Expressway
The Colombo Outer Circular Expressway (also known as the Outer Circular Highway (OCH), Colombo Inter-provincial Orbital Router or the Arthur C. Clarke Expressway) is a highway in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was opened in sections. The long outer circ ...
* Colombo-Katunayake Expressway
Colombo - Katunayake Expressway is Sri Lanka's second E Class highway. The highway links the Sri Lankan capital Colombo with Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake and Negombo. Construction on the highway began in October 2009, and it w ...
International Highways in Western Province
*
National Highways in Western Province
* Kollupitiya
Kollupitiya, also known as Colpetty is a major neighbourhood of Colombo, Sri Lanka. The name Kollupitiya comes from the name of a chief from Kandy who had unsuccessfully attempted to dethrone the last king of Kandy. During the period of British ...
to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, commonly known as Kotte (), is the legislative capital of Sri Lanka. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is a satellite city and located within the urban area of Sri Lanka's de facto economic, executive, and judicial capital, ...
* 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 m ...
to Dummaladeniya
* 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 m ...
to Alutgama
* 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 m ...
to kochchikade
* 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 m ...
to Avissawella
* Panadura
Panadura ( si, පානදුර, translit=Pānadura; ta, பாணந்துறை, translit=Pāṇantuṟai) is a city in Kalutara District, Western Province in Sri Lanka. It is located approximately south of Colombo and is surrounded on ...
to Nambapana
* Ja Ela
Ja-Ela ( si, ජා-ඇල, ta, ஜா-எல) is a suburb of Colombo, located approximately north of the Colombo city centre. Ja-Ela lies on the A3 road which overlaps with the Colombo – Katunayake Expressway at the Ja-Ela Interchange.
E ...
to Yakkala
Yakkala is a village located between Nittambuwa and Kadawatha on the A1 Highway (Colombo-Kandy Road). It forms part of Gampaha Municipal Council and located in the Gampaha District, Western Province. It is located from Colombo, east of Gampah ...
See also
* List of settlements in Western Province (Sri Lanka)
Western Province, Sri Lanka, Western Province is a Provinces of Sri Lanka, province of Sri Lanka, containing the Colombo District, Gampaha District, and Kalutara District. The following is a list of settlements in the province.
__NOTOC__
A
Aboy ...
* Provinces of Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, provinces ( si, පළාත, translit=Paḷāta; ta, மாகாணம், translit=Mākāṇam) are the first level administrative division. They were first established by the British rulers of Ceylon in 1833. Over the next ...
* Districts of Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, districts ( si, දිස්ත්රික්ක, ''Distrikka'', ta, மாவட்டம், ''Māvaṭṭam'') are the second-level administrative divisions, and are included in a province. There are 25 districts o ...
Notes
References
External links
Western Provincial Council
{{Authority control
1833 establishments in Ceylon
Provinces of Sri Lanka