Moratuwa
| Moratuwa මොරටුව மொறட்டுவை | |
|---|---|
| suburb | |
  Moratuwa | |
| Coordinates: 6°47′56.66″N 79°52′36.04″E / 6.7990722°N 79.8766778°ECoordinates: 6°47′56.66″N 79°52′36.04″E / 6.7990722°N 79.8766778°E | |
| Country |
 Sri Lanka |
| Province | Western Province |
| District | Colombo District |
| Elevation | 28 m (92 ft) |
| Population (2001) | |
| • Total | 177,190 |
| Time zone | SLT (UTC+5:30) |
| Postal Code | 10400 |
Moratuwa is a large suburb of Colombo city, on the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka, near Dehiwela-Mount Lavinia. It is situated on the Galle–Colombo (Galle road) main highway, 18 km south of Colombo city centre. Moratuwa is surrounded on three sides by water, except in the north of the city, by the Indian Ocean on the west and the Bolgoda lake on the east. According to the 2001 census, the suburb had a population of 177,190.[1]
Moratuwa is also the birthplace of Veera Puran Appu, a hero who rose against oppression by the British in Kandy.
Suburb structure
Moratuwa consists of 22 main areas: Angulana, lunawa,Borupana, Dahampura, Egoda Uyana, Idama, Indibedda, Kadalana, Kaduwamulla, Kaldemulla, Katubedda, Katukurunda, Koralawella, Lakshapathiya, Molpe, Moratumulla,Puwakaramba, Rawathawatta, Soysapura, Thelawala, Uswatta, Uyana and Willorawatta.[2]
Industries
Industries in Moratuwa include the manufacture of furniture, rubber products, batteries, transformers, and wood handicrafts. This suburb is also a fishing and trading center. Of these, Moratuwa is most well known for its furniture.
Education
The University of Moratuwa, a leading technological university in South Asia is situated in this suburb. Popular high schools in the area include Prince of Wales' College, Our Lady of Victories Convent, St. Sebastian's College, Moratu Maha Vidyalaya,Methodist High School, Janasetha Computer center.
Cricket
Moratuwa is famous for its cricket stars such as Duleep Mendis,Susil Fernando, Roger Wejesuriya, Hemal Mendis,Romesh Kaluwitharana Sriyan Samararatna, Prasanna Jayawardene, Dinusha Fernando, Lahiru Thirimanne and Ajantha Mendis. An international cricket stadium, De Soysa Stadium (Tyronne Fernando Stadium) is situated in Moratuwa.
Music
Moratuwa is famous for its music and is home to some well-known musicians such as W. D. Amaradeva,C.T Fernando M. S. Fernando, Nihal Nelson, (Golden Chimes Band) Los Flamingos, Christopher Paul, Priya Peiris (La Bambas), Sunil Perera (The Gypsies), Paul Fernando, Supriya Zoysa, Saman Silva, Chandra Devadithiya, Punsiri Soysa, Derik De Silva, Danapala Udawaththa, Rajiv Sebastian, Lankika Perera, Lucky Deva, Malkanthi Nandhasiri, Asanka Priyamantha, Ivan De Silva, and Merril Fernando. The town also has a famous "theme song", "Punsada paaya Moratuwa dillenna" (meaning "Moratuwa in the splendour of the full moon"), which is a staple at most musical events held in Moratuwa.
Demographics
Moratuwa consisting of all ethnic and religious groups seen in Sri Lanka. This suburb has a percentage Christian population after Negombo city, significantly higher than the national average.
Public library
Janasetha Kala ketha
Public Library - Moratuwa
- Janasetha Kala Ketha
The Public library of Moratuwa Municipal Council “Janasetha Kala Ketha” at Galle Road, Katubedda, Moratuwa, Sri Lanka was opened in 1987.This was constructed by the funds raised by Moratuwa municipal council to the amount of rupees 15 laks and 50 laks by the Japanese organization “World Exposition Commemorative”. The library was constructed according to Japanese architecture.
The interior space of library consists of 12,000 cubic feet. Among the facilities of the library there is a separate Computer Lab which can accommodate 25 students, an Auditorium with 250 seats and an outdoor theater which can accommodate 200 people.
The Janasetha Kala Ketha has 7 sub libraries and two 2 reading rooms in the Municipal Council area of Moratuwa. The library book collection has approximately 35,000 Sinhala books, 18,000 English books, 4000 Tamil books and children books, including news papers journals, audio visuals etc.
Among the other facilities provided by the main library are art and stories hour and Tamil language hour for children, Computer classes for children and adults, conference, lectures etc. Every year the library celebrates the literature month (September) and National reading month (October), conducting various activities to develop reading habits among the children. Janasetha Kala Ketha the public library of Moratuwa has been awarded as The Best Public Library in Colombo district in the years 2012, 2013 and as The Best Public Library in the Western Province of the Island in 2012. From 2004 this library was continuously awarded with the National reading month (October) award by the National Documentation and Library Services Board of Sri Lanka. The public library is open on every working day from 7.00 a.m. To 6.00 p.m. Except on public holidays.
| Ethnicity | Population | % Of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Sinhalese | 168,324 | 95.00 |
| Sri Lankan Tamils | 4,433 | 2.50 |
| Indian Tamils | 375 | 0.21 |
| Sri Lankan Moors | 2,452 | 1.38 |
| Other (including Burgher, Malay) | 1,606 | 0.91 |
| Total | 177,190 | 100 |
Source: http://www.statistics.gov.lk/census2001/population/district/t002c.htm
| Religion | Population | % of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Buddhists | 124,205 | 70.00 |
| Catholics | 33,893 | 19.1 |
| Other Christians | 11,806 | 6.7 |
| Islam | 3,311 | 1.9 |
| Hindu | 3,367 | 1.9 |
| Total | 177,190 | 100 |
Source: http://www.sdinet.org/media/upload/countries/documents/Moratuwa_City.pdf
Transport
The main road transport link to Moratuwa is the Colombo-Galle Highway (Galle Road), which links the suburb from the north and south. Moratuwa is linked to the outside by four bridges, old Moratuwa Bridge at the town centre, New Galle Road Bridge at Modara, Kospalana Bridge and Borupana Road Bridge, all across the Bolgoda lake. The town is linked by Galle Road to the north at Ratmalana, to Panadura to the south and to Pilyandala in the east. Access to the Southern Expressway from Moratuwa is either through Kottawa or by Horana Road.
The coastal railway line from Colombo to Matara runs through Moratuwa along the coast. Railway stations at Angulana, Lunawa, Moratuwa, Koralawella and Egodauyana serve residents of Moratuwa.
References
- ↑ "Sri Lanka: largest cities and towns and statistics of their population". Archived from the original on 2012-12-16. Retrieved 2010-10-09.
- ↑ "Administrative Map - District Division: Moratuwa". Retrieved 2008-07-14.