Ampara District ( ta, அம்பாறை மாவட்டம், translit=Ampāṟai Māvaṭṭam; si, අම්පාර දිස්ත්‍රික්කය, translit=Ampāra Distrikkaya) is one of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second-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 ...

s of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary (previously known as a Government Agent) appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. The capital of the district is the town of Ampara. The district was carved out of the southern part of

Batticaloa District Batticaloa District ( ta, மட்டக்களப்பு மாவட்டம் ''Maṭṭakkaḷappu Māvaṭṭam''; si, මඩකලපුව දිස්ත්‍රික්කය ''maḍakalapūva distrikkaya'') is one of the 25 dist ...

in April 1961.

Geography

Ampara District is located in the south east of Sri Lanka in the Eastern Province. It has an area of . It is bounded by Batticaloa and

Polonnaruwa Poḷonnaruwa, ( si, පොළොන්නරුව, translit=Poḷonnaruva; ta, பொலன்னறுவை, translit=Polaṉṉaṟuvai) also referred as Pulathisipura and Vijayarajapura in ancient times, is the main town of Polonnaruwa Dis ...

districts from north,

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...

from east,

Hambantota District Hambantota District ( si, හම්බන්තොට දිස්ත්‍රික්කය ''hambantoṭa distrikkaya''; ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை மாவட்டம் ''Ampāntōṭṭai māvaṭṭam'') is a district i ...

from south,

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

Matale Matale ( Sinhala: මාතලේ, ta, மாத்தளை, translit=Māttaḷai) is the administrative capital city of the Matale District. It is the most urbanised and populated centre in the district. Matale is also the second largest muni ...

districts from northwest and by the

Monaragala District Monaragala (, ) is a district in Uva Province of Sri Lanka. It is the second largest of the 25 districts in Sri Lanka, with an area of . Main Towns * Monaragala * Bibile * Buttala * Wellawaya * Kataragama * Siyambalanduva * medagama * Thanam ...

from west and southeast. The north-western panhandle of Ampara District (Dehiyattakandiya D.S. Division) is separated from the rest of the district and Eastern Province by the Maduru Oya Reservoir.

Demographics

Population

Ampara District's population was 648,057 in 2012. The district is one of the most diverse in Sri Lanka, both ethnically and religiously. The population of the district, like the rest of the east and

north North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

, was affected by the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. The war killed an estimated 100,000 people. Several hundred thousand Sinhalese move to west side of the country. Many Sri Lankan Tamils also moved to the relative safety of the 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 ...

. The war also caused many people from all ethnic and religious groups who lived in the district to flee to other parts of Sri Lanka, though most of them have returned to the district since the end of the civil war.

Ethnicity

Religion

Politics and government

Local government

Ampara District has 20

local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

of which two are Municipal Councils, one is an Urban Council and the remaining 17 are Divisional Councils (Pradesha Sabhai or Pradeshiya Sabha).

Administrative units

Ampara District is divided into 20

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 ...

(DS Divisions), each headed by a Divisional Secretary (previously known as an Assistant Government Agent). The DS Divisions are further sub-divided into 507

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).

Notes

References

External links

Ampara District Secretariat
{{Provinces and Districts of Sri Lanka 1961 establishments in Ceylon Districts of Sri Lanka