T

SRI LANKA (CEYLON)

HE island of Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean off the southern extremity of the Indian sub-continent, between latitudes 5° 55′ and 9° 50′ N. and longitudes 79° 42′ and 81° 53′ E. It is separated from Cape Cormorin by the Palk Strait. The maximum length of the island from north to south is 270 miles and its greatest width is 140 miles. Its area is 25,332 square miles, about half the size of England.

From a central massif of mountains composed of almost solid gneiss and of outstanding scenic beauty the land slopes down to the sea on all sides in a series of three terraces or peneplains. The third of these lies at approximately 6,000 feet, the second at 1,600 feet and the first at 100 feet. The first peneplain or coastal plain is broadest towards the north.

The highest peak in the central massif is Pidurutalagala (8,281 feet). The other major peaks are Kirigalpota (7,857 feet), Totapola Kanda (7,733 feet), Adam's Peak (7,360 feet) and Great Western (7,269 feet). Although not particularly high, the fourth of these, Adams' Peak, is probably the most famous and spectacular mountain in Asia south of the Himalayas. It has been likened in outline to the Matterhorn and the pinnacle can be seen far out at sea in all directions. A mark on the summit which resembles a gigantic human footprint has made it since early times one of the great places of pilgrimage in the world, revered by Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims. For Buddhists, the footprint is that of Gautama, for Hindus that of Vishnu, and in Muslim tradition it was made by Adam when he was cast down from Paradise.

Rivers radiate from the central massif in all directions, the longest of which, Mahaweli Ganga (more than 200 miles long), drains into Trincomalee Bay. None of the rivers is navigable to ocean-going vessels. Sri Lanka has an excellent natural harbour at Trincomalee; it was an important naval base from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries and was again in use as such during the Second World War.

The climate is hot in the low country, particularly from March to May. The average mean temperature is 79°-82°F and the humidity in the wet zone is high. In the hills it is pleasantly temperate, and at resorts such as Nurawa Eliya near Pidurutalagala there may be frost at night in December and January but no

snow or ice. There are two main seasons, that of the south-west monsoon from mid-May to September and that of the north-east monsoon from November to March. The average temperature in Colombo throughout the year is 80°F ranging to a maximum of 95°F. The annual rainfall ranges from 43 inches in the dry Northern Province to 218 inches in the central massif. The inland average is 99.49 inches.

A national census conducted in October 1971 found the total population to be 13.2 million. The distribution of the main ethnic groups at the time of the 1971 census was (per cent):

There is a census every ten years. In 1970 the estimated birth and death rates were 29.4 per thousand and 8.0 per thousand respectively. The net annual increase in population in 1971 was 2.3 per cent. It is estimated that 66-7 per cent of the population are Buddhists, 18.2 per cent Hindus, 9.4 per cent Christians, 5.6 per cent Muslims and others 0.1 per cent.

Primary education is free and compulsory, but there are not yet enough school places to enable all children to attend. About 31-4 per cent of the population attend secondary schools, and the literacy figure for 1972 was 82-1 per cent. There were 11,813 students attending university in 1970/71.

Sri Lanka is divided into nine provinces, these (with population figures according to the 1971 census) being: Western (3,404,444), Central (1,956,755), Southern (1,666,710), Northern (877,768), Eastern (722,883), North-Western (1,407,894), North-Central (553,065), Uva (807,820) and Sabaragamuwa (1,313,804). For administrative purposes, the provinces are divided into districts (22 in all), each of which is administered by a Government Agent, who is a member of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service.

The capital of Sri Lanka is Colombo, with an estimated population in 1971 of 564,000. Other major towns are: Jaffna (107,000), Kandy (92,000) and Galle (71,000). Colombo, Trincomalee and Galle Port are the principal ports, Colombo handling 2,485,000 tons cargo during 1972. Sri Lanka Shipping Corporation operates six cargo vessels, all purchased between 1971 to date. More vessels will be purchased shortly.

The principal airports are the Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake, 19 miles to the north of Colombo, with a runway of 11,000 feet, and Ratmalana, 9 miles south of Colombo, with a runway of 6,000 feet. A new passenger terminal building at Katunayake, built with substantial assistance from the Canadian Government, was opened for use in June 1968, Ceylon's national airline is Air Ceylon.

The railway system, operated by Ceylon Government Railways, has (excluding sidings) 845 miles of broad gauge line and 87 miles of narrow gauge. At its highest point the railway reaches 6,200 feet above sea level. At the end of 1967 the total road mileage was some 13,000. of which 10,780 miles were motorable. Of the motorable roads, 7,670 miles were bitumen surfaced and the rest were tarred.

The Ceylon Broadcasting Corporation, a public corporation since 5th January 1967, provides services in Sinhala, Tamil and English for the whole island. There is no television service at present but the possibility of introducing television on a limited scale is under consideration.

Principal products include, tea, rubber, copra, spices and gems. There is increasing emphasis on local production of food, particularly rice. Plans also exist for large-scale production of sugar cane, cotton and citrus fruits.

Government revenue for the financial year 1974 is estimated at Rs.4,115 million which is a 2.5% increase on the provisional estimate for 1973. Estimated total Government expenditure for 1974 is Rs.3,936 million so that a current account surplus of Rs.179 million is forecast.

The economy of Sri Lanka has traditionally been based on export agriculture, particularly tea production and to a lesser extent rubber and coconut products. Production of these commodities has remained fairly static whilst world prices have tended to fall. Export earnings which had been improving steadily from the low levels of 1963 declined in the years 1966 and 1967. Even in 1968 although, as a result of the devaluation, rupee terms increased substantially, in terms of U.S. Dollars the decline continued. In 1972 the value of Sri Lanka's exports was Rs.1,942 million, or Rs.5 million less than in 1971.

Since 1965, successive World Bank missions have discussed with the Government possible lines along which the economy could be stimulated, and meetings of aid-giving countries (in particular the Paris Aid Group) have been regularly convened as a result of which commodity and project aid has been regularly forthcoming.

The Government introduced a Five Year Economic Plan (1972/76) in November 1971 which aims to develop agriculture, expand industry and create 800,000 new jobs. It envisages a total capital investment of some Rs.15,000 million (almost equally divided between the private and the public sectors) producing an annual growth rate of 6%. Performance under the Plan has been disappointing with growth in real terms increasing marginally by 0.4% during the first year.

In 1967 the rupee was devalued by 20% and in May 1968 the Foreign Exchange Entitlement Certificate Scheme (F.E.E.C.S.) was introduced. Under this scheme all foreign exchange payments, other than for essential food and one or two specific items, are authorised only after the purchase of F.E.E.C.S. The F.E.E.C. rate is at present (since November 1972) 65%. Foreign exchange receipts for exports other than traditional exports are exchanged at the F.E.E.C. rate. Visitors encashing foreign currency in Banks and certain authorised hotels are also entitled to receive a premium of 65%.

The earliest known inhabitants of Ceylon were aborigines who migrated, about five thousand years ago, from the pre-Dravidian tribes which populated the Deccan. The most important of these early settlers were the Nagas, a tribe which ruled the northern and north-eastern coasts of Ceylon, and the Yakkas, who dominated the interior. Their descendants, the primitive Veddhas, are still to be found in small numbers in the remote forests of the interior. The ancient Sanskrit name of Ceylon was Lanka.

The chronological sequence of the earliest Sinhalese kings is confused and open to some doubt. Vijaya I, the traditional founder of the Great Dynasty in 543 B.C., was the son of Sinha Bahu (the lion), a petty nobleman of Bengal. Expelled from India for lawlessness, Vijaya landed in the island and soon became the King of Ceylon. Vijaya's followers were called Sihala, or Sinhala (lion race) after Vijaya's father, and are now known as Sinhalese.

Vijaya and his successors organised the country on a patriarchal village system and colonists from southern India were encouraged to settle. The civilization of Ceylon from the earliest times up to the twelfth century was centred on the dry zone; the wet zone in the south-west part of the island was the least developed. The whole surface of the northern plains, comprising some twelve thousand square miles of jungle and semi-desert, was converted to cultivated land by means of a vast irrigation system, which was to last for fifteen centuries, involving the construction of huge tanks or reservoirs, supplying an intricate system of canals which watered every village.

Buddhism was introduced into Ceylon during the reign of Tissa, circa 247-207 B.C., by the son of the Emperor Asoka, Prince Mahinda, who planted at Anuradhapura the sacred Bo-tree which survives to this day. Successive kings constructed tanks for irrigation and built dagobas. Monasteries and Buddhist temples were constructed in every important village and became centres of spiritual life, education and culture.

The country flourished for several centuries until it was invaded from southern India. The history of Ceylon thereafter is largely a succession of invasions from southern India and of internal strife fomented by Sinhalese chiefs who employed Tamil mercenaries in their conflicts with the royal line. From the seventh century onwards the Tamils came in increasing numbers and they filled all the

principal offices, including that of Prime Minister. In the eighth century they forced the king to leave Anuradhapura, which had been the Sinhalese royal seat for almost a thousand years, and the capital was moved to Polonnaruwa. In 1017 the whole of Ceylon was subdued by a great invasion from the Chola Empire but sixty years later a Sinhalese prince of the exiled royal house succeeded in restoring part of the Sinhalese kingdom. The exploits of a successor, King Parakrama Bahu I, who became ruler of the entire island and reduced the Chola and Pandya Empires to the position of tributaries, are among the most notable in the history of Ceylon. Thirty years after his death invaders from Kalinga in southern India appeared and under their leader Magha the north of Ceylon became a Tamil kingdom. This kingdom, which came to be known as the Jaffna Kingdom, survived successive invasions from India and remained separate from the Sinhalese kingdoms. Magha's invasion compelled the Sinhalese rulers to move south and a new capital was eventually established in 1410 at Kotte, near Colombo.

The Sinhalese kings who followed Parakrama were weak and exercised little control over their semi-independent chiefs, who, beyond acknowledging the nominal supremacy of the Kotte king, usually obeyed no other authority than their own. This led, at the end of the fifteenth century, to the rise of an independent kingdom of Kandy, dividing the inhabitants into low-country and upcountry Sinhalese. The high-country kingdom of Kandy comprised the present North-Central and Eastern Provinces and Hambantota District. The lowcountry kingdom of Kotte covered the present North-Western, Western and Sabaragamuwa Provinces and the Galle and Matara Districts. In the sixteenth century the low-country was divided between the Sinhalese king at Kotte and Sitavaka, a relative and rival to the throne.

The Portuguese first visited the island in 1505 and were granted permission to build a fort at Colombo. At this period the commerce of Ceylon was in the hands of the Ceylon Moors, so-called by the Portuguese, who were Muslims of Arab stock and had traded with Ceylon for centuries before the birth of Muhammad. The principal trade of the island was centred on Galle.

The Portuguese returned in 1517 and built the fort, and later named the township the City of St. Lawrence. The Sinhalese king at Kotte was persuaded to submit to Portuguese protection and gave them the cinnamon trade, for the collection of which Sinhalese villagers were organised into forced labour. Despite the defection of their king the Sinhalese people resisted the Portuguese as far as they were able and Portuguese records later showed that Ceylon was 'gradually consuming her Indian revenues, wasting her forces and artillery, and causing a greater outlay for the government of that single island than for all her other conquests of the East'. The last legitimate king of Ceylon ruling from Kotte was Dharmapala, a protégé of the Portuguese. He died in 1597 bequeathing Ceylon to King Philip II of Spain (Philip I of Portugal), who thus gained control of the island except for the Tamil kingdom of Jaffna, which the Portuguese took in 1621, and the territory of the king of Kandy. The Portuguese introduced monopolies on cinnamon, areca and pepper, precious stones, elephants and the pearl fishery. They also introduced Roman Catholicism, which to-day has more than three quarters of a million adherents in Ceylon.

The Dutch from 1602 began to take an interest in the island and from 1634, with help from the king of Kandy, gradually overran the Portuguese possessions. A Dutch Governor arrived for the new settlements in 1640 and a truce with