DMC-Technology & Mitigation Division

Ratnapura District Profile

a. Location and Area

Ratnapura is a district of Sri Lanka in the province of Sabaragamuwa The gem-mining centre of Sri Lanka is also a major crossroad between southern plains and the hill country to the east. A bustling market city servicing most of the surrounding towns. Many of the prominent gem dealers in Sri Lanka operate from this town. Scenery around the town is excellent and charming. There is a route to Sri Pada from Ratnapura direction. Excursions include Sinharaja Forest Reserve and Udawalawe National Park. The route towards hill country is beautiful. The surrounding area is a popular trekking destination and a good place for bird watching. Visit traditional gem mining and cutting operations

b. Boundaries

North - kagalle & Nuwara eliya
South   -Hambantota & Galle
West   - Colombo & Kalutara
East     - Badulla & Monaragala

c. Administrative Division

Ratnapura District is divided in to 17 Divisional Secretariat Divisions and their activities are coordinated and supervised by the Ratnapura District Secretariat.

Table 2.9 - Extent, Number of GN Divisions and Villages in each Division

Division	Sq. km.	GN Divisions	Villages
Ayagama	157.7	21	67
Balangoda	272.1	53	259
Eheliyagoda	128.4	44	96
Elapatha	83.8	20	68
Embilipitiya	361.3	40	107
Godakawela	170.3	44	62
Imbulpe	230.4	50	252
Kahawatta	102.1	21	54
Kalawana	396.9	33	125
Kiriella	79.5	17	33
Kolonna	180.1	29	123
Kuruvita	181.4	39	85
Nivithigala	159.2	24	82
Opanayake	74.64	20	119
Pelmadulla	144.5	37	111
Ratnapura	318.1	53	160
Weligepola	194	30	138
Total	3234.44	575	1941

Source: Dept. of Census and Statistics

e. Local Government Units

Ratnapura district consist of 17 local authorities consisting of 1 Municipal Council, 2 urban councils and 14 Pradeshiya Sabhas.

Names of Local Government units

Municipal Council

Ratnapura

Urban Councils

Balangoda

Embilipitiya

Pradeshiya Sabha

Eheliyagoda

Pelmadulla

Kuruwita

Imbulpe

Godakawela

Kahawatta

Rakwana

Balangoda

Weligepola

Nivitigala

Ayagama

Kalawana

Embilipitiya

Kolonna

Nattandiya

f. Physical Features

Located some 101 km south east of Colombo, it is the centre of a long-established industry of precious stone mining including rubies, sapphires, and other gems. Apart from gem mining, the town is known for rice and fruit cultivations. Large plantations of tea and rubber surround the town. Tea grown in this region is called low-country tea. There is a well-established tourism industry in Ratnapura. Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Udawalawe National Park, Kitulgala, and Sri pada are especially popular among tourists.

g.g.

i. Climate and Rainfall

Ratnapura is located in the south-western part of Sri Lanka, the so-called wet zone. The town receives rainfall mainly from south-western monsoons from May to September. During the remaining months of the year, there is also considerable precipitation due to convective rains. The average annual precipitation is about 4,000 to 5,000 mm. The average temperature varies from 24 to 35 °C, and there are high humidity levels. The city is above 21m from sea level.

1	Annual Rainfall in Selected Areas and seasonal pattern	North East Monsoon (Nov-Feb)	Inter Monsoon -01(Feb-Apr)	South West Monsoon (May- Sep)	Inter Monsoon – 02 (Oct-Nov)

Table 2.10 - Temperature in Ratnapura District in ^oC

Month	Years 1961 - 1990 Average	2007 Highest Lowest		2008 Highest Lowest
January	27.2	31.8	21.3	31.5	21.8
February	27.8	34.6	22	32.8	22.2
March	28.3	34.9	23.9	32	22.9
April	28.5	33.1	23.3	31.9	22.7
May	27.9	32.4	24.1	31	23.9
June	27.3	31.1	23.8	30.2	23.3
July	27.1	30.5	24	29.8	23.1
August	27.1	30.6	23.5	30.4	23.2
September	27	30.7	23.2	31.7	22.6
October	27.1	30	22.9	31.8	22.7
November	27.1	32	22.5	31.2	22.5
December	27.1	31	22.3	31.8	22.5
Average	27.5	31.9	23.1	31.3	22.8

Source: Dept. of Census and Statistics

j. Mineral Resources

Ratnapura district is well known for its gem mines containing Rubies, Sapphires and a large variety of other gem stones.

k. Population

The population of the Ratnapura district was 1,015,800 in 2001, and this consisted of 86.42% Buddhists and 9.88% Hindus, with the rest of the population being Christians and Muslims.

Table 2.3 - Division vise Population according to age

Division	Under 18 years	Over 18 years	Total Population
Ayagama	9883	20366	30249
Balangoda	31828	49827	81655
Eheliyagoda	23265	44201	67466
Elapatha	13000	25367	38367
Embilipitiya	50597	75698	126295
Godakawela	27258	45757	73015
Imbulpe	21697	36976	58673
Kahawatta	17190	27669	44859
Kalawana	19813	31596	51409
Kiriella	10961	21659	32620
Kolonna	20858	25295	46153
Kuruvita	32198	58519	90717
Nivithigala	24068	38351	62419
Opanayake	9945	16959	26904
Pelmadulla	33046	56704	89750
Ratnapura	44424	77286	121710
Weligepola	11918	18819	30737
Total	401949	671049	1072998

Source: Dept. of Census and Statistics

Table 2.4 - Division vise Demographic Details

Name of the Division	2001 Estimated
Name of the Division	No. of families	Population
Ayagama	6 413	28 491
Balangoda	21 969	77 026
Eheliyagoda	16 430	63 332
Elapatha	9 725	35 576
Embilipitiya	31 794	118 307
Godakawela	21 949	69 263
Imbulpe	15 547	55 228
Kahawatta	10 089	42 083
Kalawana	11 988	48 201
Kiriella	8 377	30 384
Kolonna	12 753	43 303
Kuruvita	21 534	85 343
Nivithigala	17 398	58 412
Opanayake	6 896	25 221
Pelmadulla	23 119	84 450
Ratnapura	28 911	114 640
Weligepola	8 408	28 904
Total	273 300	1 008 164

Table 2.5 – Population Details by ethnicity

Sinhala	Tamil	Indian Tamil	Muslim	Malay	Burgher	Other	Total
873 265	34 335	78 581	20 871	245	405	462	1 008 164

Table 2.6 - Percentage Distribution of Population (10 years and over) by Literacy

And Sex (1981 Census)

Literacy	Total %	Sex
Literacy	Total %	M	F
Literate	88.35	90.4	86.3
Illiterate	11.65	09.6	13.7
Total	100%	100%	100%

Source:

l. Social Structure

m. Health

Ratnapura district has a General hospital and 13 base/district hospitals.

n. Education

There are 578 schools in Ratnapura district.

Table 2.7 - Number of schools

Division	National schools	Grade 1 A&B	Grade 1 C	Grade 2	Grade 3	Total
Ayagama	0	1	1	8	15	25
Balangoda	2	1	7	33	5	48
Eheliyagoda	1	0	8	19	7	35
Elapatha	0	0	4	4	12	20
Embilipitiya	1	1	9	33	3	47
Godakawela	1	2	6	14	23	46
Imbulpe	0	1	5	24	15	45
Kahawatta	0	1	2	17	7	27
Kalawana	1	1	5	10	16	33
Kiriella	0	1	3	6	7	17
Kolonna	1	0	5	16	8	30
Kuruvita	0	1	6	23	7	37
Nivithigala	1	0	6	8	17	32
Opanayake	0	0	3	9	5	17
Pelmadulla	1	1	6	15	16	39
Ratnapura	5	1	17	22	18	60
Weligepola	0	1	2	14	3	20
Total	14	13	95	275	184	578

Source: Dept. of Census and Statistics

Table 2.8 - Students studying in GCE (AL) Classes

	Science			Arts			Commerce
	Boys	Girls	Total	Boys	Girls	Total	Boys	Girls	Total
No.			3304			7487			3971
%

o. Economy

Gem trade

The economy of Ratnapura depends mainly on the gem trade. Gem pits are a common sight in the district. Most of the large-scale gem businessmen of Sri Lanka operate from Ratnapura. There are considerable numbers of foreign gem traders in town too. Among the foreign traders, Thai (Thailand) traders are in the majority. Every day, large number of traders from suburbs and other towns gather in the town centre to sell or buy gemstones. Large-scale merchants collect gemstones from locals and sell them in the international market. Some traders go out of the city to buy gems. This includes neighboring towns like Kalawana, Bogawantalawa, and Ela-era. After the discovery of world-class alluvial sapphire deposits in the valley of Ilakaka in Madagascar, many Ratnapura merchants travel out of the country to Madagascar to buy gems.

Agriculture

The town's agricultural industry is also well developed. Large plantations of tea and rubber surround the town. Although rice fields also used to be a common sight around the town, rice cultivation presently faces an uncertain future in Ratnapura because many farmers are giving up their rice cultivation and switching to gem mining which is a more productive way of earning money. If many farmers give up on agriculture, it would be harder for farmers to harvest enough food for them and to trade in the markets. Many delicious fruits like mango and papaya) and vegetables are grown as market products.

Table 2.11 - Extent of Paddy Cultivation in 2005/ 2006

Total No. of Lots	Less than ½ acre	½ - 1 acre	1 – 5 acres	More than 5 acres

Percentage

Table 2.11 - Cultivated Extent of Paddy – Irrigation Pattern

Year	No. of Lots	Cultivated Extent in Acres			Total
Year	No. of Lots	Major Irrigation	Minor Irrigation	Rain fed	Total
2003$04		1902	6859	3882	12643
2004$05		1899	6521	3787	12207

q. Infrastructure

i. Transportation

Ratnapura is located in the A4 Highway which connects capital Colombo to Kalmunai in the Eastern Province. Another Highway (A8) connects the town with Panadura in the western coast of Sri Lanka. During the British occupation of the Island, a narrow gauge train track was laid in 1912 connecting Colombo - Avissawella - Ratnapura - Opanayake. However the line from Avissawella onwards was removed in 1976 thus limiting the mode of transportation only to road. In 2006, construction started on a new broad gauge railway line up to Avissawella.

Table 2.14 - Infrastructure – Details of the Road Network

Grade	Tarred	Gravel	Total
A	272.25	0	272.25
B	450.39	0	450.39
C	501.78	2.2	503.98
D	421.01	21.4	442.41
Municipal, UC and Pradeshiya Sabha Roads	1525.53	4897.26	6422.79
Total	3170.96	4920.86	8091.82

Table 2.15 - Infrastructure – Details of Consumers of Electricity

	2004	2005	2006
Domestic	262 203	278 616	252 257
Religious	1 744	1 828	1 604
Business	31 026	32 924	29 202
Industries	980	976	929
total	295 953	314 344	283 992

Table 2.16 - Infrastructure – Details of Consumers of pipe borne water

	2004	2005	2006
Domestic	39 080	42 246	46 590
Religious	321	338	351
Business	3 583	3 793	4 097
Industries	74	77	98
Total	43 058	46 454	51 136

r. Industry

Table 2.1 - Other functional areas at a Glance

9	Number of Police Stations	21
10	Number of General Hospitals (TH)	01
	Number of Base Hospitals	13
	Number of District Hospitals
	Number of Division Hospitals
	Number of Private Hospitals
	Number of Peripheral units	05
	Number of Rural Hospitals	16
	Number of Central Dispensaries	06
13	No. of houses in the district	273717
14	No of Post Offices	31
	Special Grade
	A Grade
	B Grade
	Sub Post Offices	174
	Agency Post Offices	25
18	No of housing units
20	No of rivers	05
22	Banks	48

s. Hazards

The town of Ratnapura is situated in the flooding plain of the river Kalu. The town experiences regular floods usually in the month of May. There is no large dam across the Kalu, so this leaves the city at the mercy of nature's forces every year. Several proposals have been made to reduce the flood risk in the town, but none has reached the feasibility stage.

t. Development