Kotte

Sri Jayewardenapura-Kotte, (ஸ்ரீ ஜயவர்த்தனபுரம் கோட்டே in Tamil) also known as Kotte, is the capital of Sri Lanka. It is located beyond the eastern suburbs of the business capital Colombo, and is therefoe often considered a part of colombo. The Parliament of Sri Lanka has been based here since the formal inauguration of its new building on 29 April 1982. Kotte has a population of 115,826 (2001 census) and is part of the Colombo Metropolitan Region.

1 History
2 Legislature
3 Municipal structure
4 Demographics
5 Infrastructure
6 Climate
7 Sports and recreation
8 External links

[edit] History

Kotte (meaning 'Fortress') was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kotte from the 14th to the 16th centuries. Situated in a marshland, it was founded on the banks of the Diyawanna Oya river as a fortress against invasions from the Jaffna Kingdom of Arya Chakaravarthi in the 13th century by a Tamil chief named Alagakkonara. Alagakkonara is mentioned by Ibn Batuta as ruling in Kurunegala, but other sources indicate that he was the Bandara (Guardian) of Raigama Korale (county) in the modern Kalutara District. Arya Chakravarthy's army was held by Alagakkonara in front of Kotte, while he defeated the enemy's invasion fleet at Panadura to the south-west.

Kotte was a jala durgha (water fortress), in the shape of a triangle, with the Diyawanna Oya marshes forming two long sides; along the shorter third (land) side a large moat (the 'inner moat') was dug. It was fortified with ramparts of kabook or laterite rock all round. The area outside the inner moat was called Pitakotte (outer fort), the area inside being Ethul Kotte (inner fort).

Later the city became the capital of the island, and was renamed Sri-Jaya-Vardhana-Pura-Kotte, meaning "the blessed fortress city of growing victory".

The Portuguese arrived on the island in 1505 and had control of the city by 1565. Failing to withstand repeated assaults by the forces of the neighbouring kingdom of Sitawaka (Avissawella), the city was abandoned by the Portuguese, who made Colombo their new capital.

The urbanisation of Kotte restarted in the 19th century. The archaeological remains were torn up and used as building materials (a process that continues) - some of it ending up in the Victoria Bridge, across the Kelani River.

[edit] Legislature

The Parliament of Sri Lanka designed by Geoffrey Bawa

After being chosen as the new capital by the new government of 1977, a massive lake was formed by dredging the marshlands around the Diyawanna Oya. The new parliamentary buildings were built on Duwa, a 50,000 square metre (12 acre) island in the centre of the lake. The island (off Baddegana Road, Pita Kotte) had been used as a recreation and brawling spot for Portuguese soldiers in the last days of the Kotte era, alcohol being banned from the Royal City. It had belonged to E.W. Perera and had housed a chicken farm prior to being vested in the state. On 29 April 1982, the new parliamentary complex was declared open by President J.R. Jayawardene.

The process of relocating government institutions from the former capital of Colombo is still in progress.

[edit] Municipal structure

The Kotte Urban Development Council was created in the 1930s, with a modern building at Rajagiriya. It was succeeded by the Kotte Urban Council, which had a large section of its area removed and tagged onto the Colombo Municipal Council ward of Borella. The Kotte Urban Council became the Sri Jayawardanapura Kotte Municipal Council in 1997, with Chandra Silva as the first Mayor.

There are 20 Members of the Municipal Council (MMCs), elected on proportional representation. There are 10 wards, but these are now merely polling divisions, without individual representation.

[edit] Demographics

Kotte is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural city. The population of Kotte is a mix of Sinhalese, Moors and Tamils. There are small communities of people with Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch, Malay and Indian origins living here. According to the census of 2001 the demographics by ethnicity and religion is as follows.

**Ethnic & Religious Identification in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte**
Source
	2001
Sinhalese	101,331
Sri Lankan Tamil	6,583
Indian Tamil	786
Sri Lankan Moor	4,031
Burgher	1,367
Malay	919
Sri Lankan Chetty	65
Baratha	57
Other	687
Total	115,826
Buddhist	93,364
Hindu	4,550
Islam	5,465
Roman Catholic	8,659
Other Christian	3,618
Other	170

[edit] Infrastructure

[edit] Transport

The only major railway station is at Nugegoda, on the Kelani Valley Line. Also at Nugegoda is the city's main bus terminus. There are subsidiary bus stands at Pita Kotte and Welikada. The city is well served by buses and there is a major CTB bus depot at Udahamulla.

A Passenger boat service is being finalised and would commence adjacent to Parliament Junction at Bataramulla and end at the Wellawatte canal near Marine drive. Each journey would take around 30 minutes. It would have stations at the Kotte Marsh, Nawala, Open University, Apollo Hospital, Wellawatte, Duplication road and at St Peter's College, Colombo.

[edit] Health

Kotte has a large public hospital, The Sri Jayawardenepura Hospital - also known as Nava rohala - located in Sri Jayawardenepura. The largest dedicated childrens Eye hospital is currently under construction at Rajagiriya.

[edit] Education

There are a number of State and Private Schools in Kotte. They are either are either "National schools" (run by the state), Semi-government/Private schools or International schools (run by trusts and individuals).

A majority of residents prefer International and private schools located in Colombo because of better infrastructure and the use of English as a medium of instruction. Demand is especially high for affiliated schools, and those run by convents or the Jesuits. The government run public schools lack certain facilities, but are the only option for poorer residents who cannot afford the more expensive schools.

The Oldest National school is located in Kotte. Also relocated at Bataramulla from its previous site in Colombo 02 is the Oldest International school catering exclusively to the expatriate community and a few select nationals; The Overseas School of Colombo.[1]

Located at Nawala is the Open University, Sri Lanka and at Nugegoda is the University of Sri Jayewardenepura.

[edit] Utilities

The Kotte MC is responsible for the road maintenance and door-to-door garbage collection in the city. They also are responsible for keeping Storm drains clean to cope with the heavy Tropical Rains.

The largest telephone service provider is Sri Lanka Telecom, which previously held a monopoly over fixed line services, and provides fixed line as well as mobile services through its subsidiary Mobitel. Cell phone coverage is extensive, and the main service providers are Dialog Telekom, Mobitel, Celltel and Hutch. Both GSM and CDMA services are available in the city. Broadband internet penetration is increasing in the city. Primary service provider; Sri Lanka Telecom.

Electricity is provided by the Lanka Electricity Co. Ltd.

[edit] Climate

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Avg Temp °C (°F)	26 (78)	26 (78)	27 (80)	28 (82)	28 (82)	27 (80)	27 (80)	27 (80)	27 (80)	26 (78)	26 (78)	26 (78)	26 (78)
Precipitation centimeters (inches)	8.5 (3.3)	6.3 (2.5)	11.2 (4.4)	25.2 (9.9)	33.5 (13.2)	19.5 (7.7)	13 (5.1)	9.5 (3.7)	16.5 (6.5)	35.8 (14.1)	30.9 (12.2)	15.3 (6)	225.1 (88.6)

source: Weatherbase

[edit] Sports and recreation

Cricket is the most popular sport in the city as well as the country, and is usually played in the grounds around the city. Incidently Kotte's govt. representative in Parliament is the Former Cricket Captain Arjuna Ranathunga.

Football has grown in popularity, and the sport now has a considerable following. The Football association's new training facility at Kotte is aimed at harnessing and developing the available talent and organizing the individual players into a cohesive team. It includes a football playground with a sprinkler system, gym and a host of other facilities.

Golf is another pastime that has increased in popularity. The Waters Edge country club is a 11 hole Golf course located at Battaramulla. Its infrastructure include; Restaurant/dining room/ballroom/conference hall, Driving range with 20 bays - 300 metres in length and floodlit for practice at night. Chip and putt area with bunkers, Swimming pool, Spa, gym, games arcade, beauty salon and a karaoke lounge.

Other sports are mostly played in the numerous clubs and gyms, and include tennis, squash, billiards, horse riding, Indoor cricket, badminton and table tennis. One such place where all these sports come together is the Austasia Sports and Leisure Complex. It is the only one of its kind in Sri Lanka and is best known for hosting indoor cricket competitions. Horse riding can be persued at the Premadasa Riding School in Nugegoda.

[edit] External links

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