North Central Province, Sri Lanka
North Central Province
උතුරු මැද පළාත வட மத்திய மாகாணம் | |
|---|---|
 Location within Sri Lanka | |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Created | 1873 |
| Admitted | 14 November 1987 |
| Capital | Anuradhapura |
| Largest City | Anuradhapura |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Maheepala Herath |
| Area | |
• Total | 10,472 km2 (4,043 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 1st (16.31% of total area) |
| Population (2011 census) | |
• Total | 1,259,567 |
| • Rank | 8th (5.91% of total pop.) |
| • Density | 120/km2 (310/sq mi) |
| Gross Regional Product (2010)[1] | |
| • Total | Rs 232 billion |
| • Rank | 7th (4.8% of total) |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (Sri Lanka) |
| ISO 3166 code | LK-7 |
| Vehicle registration | NC |
| Official Languages | Sinhalese, Tamil |
| Website | www |
North Central Province (Template:Lang-si Uturumæda Paḷāta, Template:Lang-ta Wada Maththiya Mākāṇam) is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division 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.[2][3] The province is the largest by size, and second least populated in the country.[1] The province consists of the districts of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, both of which were important ancient Sri Lankan kingdoms. The climate is semi-arid, and the forests are dry evergreen forests.
History
The centralised system of Sri Lanka, which is a unitary state, failed to satisfy the aspirations of the people. There was growing insistence on decentralisation of administrative processes to achieve rapid economic and social development of the country.
In the Sri Lankan context, devolution means the transferring of political and administrative decision-making authority from the central government to elected bodies at the lower levels.
Demographics
Employment
| Employed Population | Total | Percentage Male | Percentage Female |
|---|---|---|---|
| Government employee | 100,045 | 76.1 | 23.9 |
| Semi government employee | 9,737 | 69.4 | 30.6 |
| Private sector employee | 84,916 | 72.7 | 27.3 |
| Employer | 7,176 | 83.9 | 16.1 |
| Own account worker | 231,848 | 80.4 | 19.6 |
| Unpaid family worker | 50,975 | 28.9 | 71.1 |
| Total | 484,697 | 72.6 | 27.4 |
Provincial council
The provincial council is the main administrative and control body in the North Central Province, which is the largest province in the country covering 16% of the country's total land area. It consists two districts, Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapure; Anuradhapure is the largest district in the country.
The province is also called Wew Bendi Rajje because there are more than 3000 medium and large scale tanks situated in the province. More than 65% of the province’s people depend on basic agriculture and agricultural based industries.
North Central Province has numerous potential for investors to start their businesses, specially agriculture, agricultural based industries and livestock sectors.
Administrative divisions
The North Central Province is divided into two districts and 29 divisional secretariats.
Districts
| District | Capital | Area (km²) | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anuradhapura District | Anuradhapura | 7,128 | 856,232 |
| Polonnaruwa District | Polonnaruwa | 3,293 | 403,335 |
Divisional secretariats
Municipal Councils
| Municipality | District | Area (ha) | Population (2001 census)[6] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anuradhapura | Anuradhapura | 5140.3 | 60,943 |
| Polonnaruwa | Polonnaruwa | 3891.92 | 13,900 |
Towns
- Aralaganwila
- Bakamuna
- Eppawala
- Giritale
- Habarana
- Hingurakgoda
- Horowpothana
- Kahatagasdigiliya
- Kebithigollewa
- Kekirawa
- Mahailuppallama
- Manampitiya
- Maradankadawala
- Medawachchiya
- Mihintale
- Minneriya
- Nochchiyagama
- Padaviya
- Polonnaruwa-Kaduruwela
- Rambewa
- Thalawa
- Thambuttegama
- Welikanda
Education
Anuradhapura
- Anuradhapura Central College
- Niwaththaka Chethiya National School. Anuradhapura
- Anuradhapura Technical College
- Buddhsravaka Bhiksu University
- K. B. Rathnayake MW
- Open University of Sri Lanka
- Rajarata University of Sri Lanka
- Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technological Education
- St. Joseph's College
- Teachers Training School
- University College of Anuradhapura (University of Vocational Technology)
Polonnaruwa
- Polonnaruwa Royal Central College
- Pulathisipura National College of Education
- Technical College-Polonnaruwa
See also
References
- ^ a b :.News Line : North, East record highest GDP growth rate Archived 2012-06-20 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Provinces of Sri Lanka". Statoids.
- ^ "Provincial Councils". Government of Sri Lanka.
- ^ "Sri Lanka Census of Population and Housing, 2011". Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka. Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ "Population of principal towns by sex, census years" (PDF). Statistical Abstract 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka.
- ^ "Population of principal towns by sex, census years" (PDF). Statistical Abstract 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka.
External links
Places adjacent to North Central Province, Sri Lanka | |
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