Eastern Province නැගෙනහිර පළාත கிழக்கு மாகாணம் | |
|---|---|
 Sunset overBatticaloa Lagoon | |
 Location within Sri Lanka | |
| Coordinates:07°55′N81°30′E / 7.917°N 81.500°E /7.917; 81.500 | |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Created | 1 October 1833 |
| Provincial council | 14 November 1987 |
| Capital | Trincomalee |
| Largest City | Kalmunai |
| Cities & Towns | List |
| Districts | |
| Government | |
| • Type | Provincial council |
| • Body | Eastern Provincial Council |
| • Governor | Jayantha Lal Ratnasekera |
| • MPs | |
| Area | |
• Total | 9,996 km2 (3,859 sq mi) |
| • Land | 9,361 km2 (3,614 sq mi) |
| • Water | 635 km2 (245 sq mi) 6.35% |
| • Rank | 2nd (15.24% of total area) |
| Population (2012 census)[2] | |
• Total | 1,551,381 |
| • Rank | 6th (7.66% of total pop.) |
| • Density | 165.7/km2 (429.2/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity (2012 census)[2] | |
| • Sri Lankan Tamil | 609,584 (39.29%) |
| • Sri Lankan Moors | 569,182 (36.69%) |
| • Sinhalese | 359,136 (23.15%) |
| • Indian Tamil | 7,711 (0.50%) |
| • Other | 5,768 (0.37%) |
| Religion (2012 census)[3] | |
| • Muslim | 575,936 (37.12%) |
| • Hindu | 539,570 (34.78%) |
| • Buddhist | 354,772 (22.87%) |
| • Christian | 80,801 (5.21%) |
| • Other | 302 (0.02%) |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (Sri Lanka) |
| Post Codes | 30000-32999 |
| Telephone Codes | 026, 063, 065, 067 |
| ISO 3166 code | LK-5 |
| Vehicle registration | EP |
| Official Languages | Tamil,Sinhalese |
| Website | www |
TheEastern Province (Sinhala:නැගෙනහිර පළාතNæ̆gĕnahira Paḷāta ,Tamil:கிழக்கு மாகாணம்Kiḻakku Mākāṇam) is one of the nineprovinces of Sri Lanka, the first leveladministrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have anylegal status until 1987 when the13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka establishedprovincial councils.[4][5] Between 1988 and 2006 the province was temporarilymerged with theNorthern Province to form theNorth Eastern Province. Thecapital of the province isTrincomalee.Kalmunai is the largest and most populous city of Eastern Province.
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In 1815 the British gained control of the entire island ofCeylon. They divided the island into three ethnic based administrative structures: Low Country Sinhalese, Kandyan Sinhalese andTamil. The Eastern Province was part of the Tamil administration. In 1833, in accordance with the recommendations of theColebrooke-Cameron Commission, the ethnic based administrative structures were unified into a single administration divided into five geographic provinces.[6] The districts ofBatticaloa, Bintenna (part of present-dayBadulla District), Tamankaduva (present dayPolonnaruwa District) andTrincomalee formed the new Eastern Province.[7] Tamankaduva was transferred to the newly createdNorth Central Province in 1873 and Bintenna was transferred to the newly createdUva Province in 1886.[8][5]
TheIndo-Lanka Accord signed on 29 July 1987 required theSri Lankan government todevolve powers to the provinces and, in the interim, tomerge the Northern and Eastern provinces into oneadministrative unit. The accord required areferendum to be held by 31 December 1988 in the Eastern Province to decide whether the merger should be permanent. Crucially, the accord allowed theSri Lankan president to postpone the referendum at his discretion.[9]
On 14 November 1987 theSri Lankan Parliament passed the 13thAmendment to the1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka and the Provincial Councils Act No 42 of 1987, establishing provincial councils.[5][10] On September 2 and 8 1988President Jayewardene issuedproclamations enabling the Northern and Eastern provinces to be one administrative unit administered by one elected Council.[11] TheNorth-East Province was born.
The proclamations were only meant to be a temporary measure until a referendum was held in the Eastern Province on a permanent merger between the two provinces. However, the referendum was never held and successive Sri Lankan presidents issued proclamations annually extending the life of the "temporary" entity.[12]
The merger was bitterly opposed by Sri Lankan nationalists. The combined North-East Province occupied one fourth of Sri Lanka. The thought of the rebelLiberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam controlling this province, directly or indirectly, alarmed them greatly. On 14 July 2006, after a long campaign against the merger, theJanatha Vimukthi Peramuna political party filed three separate petitions with theSupreme Court requesting a separateprovincial council for the East.[11] On 16 October 2006 the Supreme Court ruled that the proclamations issued by President Jayewardene were null and void and had no legal effect.[11] The North-East Province was formally de-merged into the Northern and Eastern provinces on 1 January 2007.
Much of the Eastern Province was under the control of rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam for many years during thecivil war. The entire province was recaptured by theSri Lankan military in 2007. Many community members blamed Pro-Government Tamil groups such as theTamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP).[13] In 2008 due to the indiscriminate firearm use by various Tamil factions government planned to disarm Tamil Paramilitary groups.[14] However the TMVP kept arms due to threat of LTTE and denied they were active in Civilian areas.[15] TMVP was finally disarmed in 2009 after the LTTE was defeated.[16]
The Eastern Province has received at least $500 million from internationaldonors since coming under the control of the government of Sri Lanka in 2007, according to theInternational Crisis Group.[17] Since the end of the war the Eastern Province has seen considerable development under theNagenahira Navodaya (Eastern Revival) program which include various agricultural, infrastructural and social development projects. These include the construction and repairing of roads, schools, hospitals, resettlement ofIDPs and construction of 88 Nanasala ICT education centers in the Eastern Province.[18][19] Other Projects include reconstructing the Walai Iravu bridge which was destroyed by the LTTE, developing the Weber stadium in the Batticaloa town, increasing agricultural production, construction ofManmunai, Vavunativu andNew Oddamavadi bridges, constructing 48,000 houses for people who live below the poverty line,[20] developing theTrincomalee Harbour, construction of theSampur Power Station, development of a maritime park and museum in Trincomalee, creation of the Sampur industrial zone,[21][22] development of bus stands, canals and theOluvil Harbour in Ampara district.[23][24]
Eastern province has an area of 9,996 square kilometres (3,859 sq mi).[1]
The province is surrounded by theNorthern Province to the north, theBay of Bengal to the east, theSouthern Province to the south, and theUva,Central andNorth Central provinces to the west.
The province's coast is dominated bylagoons, the largest beingBatticaloa Lagoon,Kokkilai lagoon,Upaar Lagoon andUllackalie Lagoon.
The Eastern Province is divided into 3administrative districts, 45Divisional Secretary's Divisions (DS Divisions) and 1,085Grama Niladhari Divisions (GN Divisions).
| District | Capital | District Secretary | DS Divisions | GN Divisions | Total Area (km2)[1] | Land Area (km2)[1] | Population (2012 Census)[2] | Population Density (/km2) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sri Lankan Tamil | Sri Lankan Moors | Sinhalese | Indian Tamil | Other | Total | ||||||||
| Ampara | Ampara | Thusitha P Wanigasinghe | 20 | 507 | 4,415 | 4,222 | 112,750 | 282,484 | 251,018 | 165 | 1,640 | 648,057 | 147 |
| Batticaloa | Batticaloa | 14 | 348 | 2,854 | 2,610 | 381,285 | 133,844 | 6,127 | 1,015 | 2,871 | 525,142 | 184 | |
| Trincomalee | Trincomalee | T. Thissa Ranjith de Silva | 11 | 230 | 2,727 | 2,529 | 115,549 | 152,854 | 101,991 | 6,531 | 1,257 | 378,182 | 139 |
| Total | 45 | 1,085 | 9,996 | 9,361 | 609,584 | 569,182 | 359,136 | 7,711 | 5,768 | 1,551,381 | 155 | ||
| City/town | District | Population (2012 est)[25] |
|---|---|---|
| Kalmunai | Ampara | 106,783 |
| Trincomalee | Trincomalee | 99,135 |
| Batticaloa | Batticaloa | 92,332 |
| Kattankudy | Batticaloa | 40,883 |
| Eravur | Batticaloa | 25,582 |
| Ampara | Ampara | 20,309 |
The Eastern province's population was 1,551,381 in 2012.[2] The province is the most diverse in Sri Lanka, both ethnically and religiously.
The population of the province, like that of the Northern Province, was heavily affected by thecivil war. The war killed an estimated 100,000 people.[26] Several hundred thousand Sri Lankan Tamils, possibly as much as one million,emigrated to theWest during the war.[27] Many Sri Lankan Tamils also moved to the relative safety of the capitalColombo. The conflict has also caused some of the Tamils, Moors and Sinhalese who lived in the province to flee to other parts of Sri Lanka, though most of them have returned to the province since the end of the civil war.
| Year | Tamil[a] | Muslim[b] | Sinhalese | Other | Total No. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | ||
| 1881 Census | 75,318 | 58.96% | 43,001 | 33.66% | 5,947 | 4.66% | 3,489 | 2.73% | 127,755 |
| 1891 Census | 86,701 | 58.41% | 51,206 | 34.50% | 7,508 | 5.06% | 3,029 | 2.04% | 148,444 |
| 1901 Census | 96,917 | 55.83% | 62,448 | 35.97% | 8,778 | 5.06% | 5,459 | 3.14% | 173,602 |
| 1911 Census | 101,181 | 55.08% | 70,395 | 38.32% | 6,909 | 3.76% | 5,213 | 2.84% | 183,698 |
| 1921 Census | 103,245 | 53.54% | 75,992 | 39.41% | 8,744 | 4.53% | 4,840 | 2.51% | 192,821 |
| 1946 Census | 136,059 | 48.75% | 109,024 | 39.06% | 23,456 | 8.40% | 10,573 | 3.79% | 279,112 |
| 1953 Census | 167,898 | 47.37% | 135,322 | 38.18% | 46,470 | 13.11% | 4,720 | 1.33% | 354,410 |
| 1963 Census | 246,059 | 45.03% | 184,434 | 33.75% | 108,636 | 19.88% | 7,345 | 1.34% | 546,474 |
| 1971 Census | 315,566 | 43.98% | 247,178 | 34.45% | 148,572 | 20.70% | 6,255 | 0.87% | 717,571 |
| 1981 Census | 410,156 | 42.06% | 315,436 | 32.34% | 243,701 | 24.99% | 5,988 | 0.61% | 975,251 |
| 2001 Census[c] | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 2007 Enumeration | 590,132 | 40.39% | 549,857 | 37.64% | 316,101 | 21.64% | 4,849 | 0.33% | 1,460,939 |
| 2012 Census | 617,295 | 39.79% | 569,738 | 36.72% | 359,136 | 23.15% | 5,212 | 0.34% | 1,551,381 |
Islam is the plurality religion in Eastern Province.
| Year | Muslim | Hindu | Buddhist | Christian[d] | Other | Total No. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | ||
| 1981 Census | 317,354 | 32.54% | 372,464 | 38.19% | 237,416 | 24.34% | 47,112 | 4.83% | 905 | 0.09% | 975,251 |
| 2012 Census | 575,936 | 37.12% | 539,570 | 34.78% | 354,772 | 22.87% | 80,801 | 5.21% | 302 | 0.02% | 1,551,381 |
The Eastern Province has a primarily agriculture-based economy and is commonly known as the "Granary of Sri Lanka". It contributes 25% of national paddy production, 17% of national milk production, and 21% of national fish production.Maize cultivation is expanding, large scale maize cultivation with hybrid seeds and contractual marketing has increased production significantly and it is targeted to produce 25% of the country's maize requirement. The industrial sector contributed 34% of the Province's GDP and export processing zones like the Trincomalee EPZ and Sampur Heavy Industrial Zone have been developed to boost the industrial sector alongside theTrincomalee Harbour, which is being developed forbreak bulk,bulk cargo and industrial activities including heavy industries.[33][34][35][36]
The province benefits from a largetourism industry with manyseaside resorts andhotels situated mainly in lagoons as well as beaches such asPasikudah,Nilaveli,Uppuveli andKalkudah.[36] Historic sites and other natural attractions such asPigeon Island contribute to the industry.[37][38][39][40]
The 13thAmendment to the1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. The firstelections for provincial councils took place on 28 April 1988 inNorth Central,North Western,Sabaragamuwa, andUva provinces.[41]
Elections in the newly mergedNorth-East Province were scheduled for 19 November 1988. However, theIndian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), which at that time occupied the North-East Province, rigged the elections in the north so that theEelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) andEelam National Democratic Liberation Front (ENDLF), twoIndian backedparamilitary groups, won all of the 36 seats in the north uncontested.[42] However, elections did take place for the 35 seats in the east. TheSri Lanka Muslim Congress won 17 seats, EPRLF 12 seats, ENDLF 5 seats and theUnited National Party 1 seat. On 10 December 1988 Annamalai Varatharajah Perumal of the EPRLF became the first Chief Minister of the North-East Provincial Council.[42]
On 1 March 1990, just as the IPKF were preparing to withdraw from Sri Lanka, Permual moved a motion in the North-East Provincial Councildeclaring anindependentEelam.[43]President Premadasa reacted to Permual's UDI by dissolving the provincial council and imposing direct rule on the province.
The north-east was ruled directly fromColombo until May 2008 whenelections were held in the demerged Eastern Province (the Northern Province continued to be governed from Colombo).
Places adjacent to Eastern Province, Sri Lanka | |
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