Balangoda බළන්ගොඩ பலாங்கொடை | |
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  Balangoda Location in Sri Lanka | |
| Coordinates:6°39′N80°41′E / 6.650°N 80.683°E /6.650; 80.683 | |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Province | Sabaragamuwa Province |
| District | Ratnapura District |
| Time zone | +5.30 |
Balangoda is a town inRatnapura District,Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an urban council located 143 kilometres (89 mi) away fromColombo and 43 kilometres (27 mi) fromRatnapura on Colombo - Batticaloa Highway(A4). It is one of the largest towns of theSabaragamuwa Province. According to the 2001census, Balangoda has apopulation of 16,875 and area of 16.2 km2 (4,000 acres).According to 2012 census data Balangoda DS Division's religious composition is as follows Buddhists 63,203-77.49%, Hindus 9,528-11.68%, Islam 6,211-7.61%, Roman Catholics 1,834-2.25%, Other Christians 782-0.96%, Others 5-0.01%.
Balangoda is notable due to thediscovery of skeletalHominini remains from the lateQuaternary period (the earliest reliably dated record of anatomically modern humans inSouth Asia).[1][2] The town is also the birthplace ofBalangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero[3] andSirimavo Bandaranaike (the world's first femalehead of government) thePrime Minister of Sri Lanka (1960–65, 1970–77 and 1994–2000).[4][5]
Balangoda is situated in the hilly central region of central Sri Lanka on Sabaragamuwa Mountain Range. The main livelihoods of this region are farming (vegetables, fruits, and spices), rice cultivation for mainly local consumption, tea cultivation for international markets as a commercial crop and gem mining.
Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka
The main schools in the area are:
| International | |
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| National | |
