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| Sri
lanka Fact File |
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| Country
Full Name : |
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Democratic Socialist
Republic of Sri Lanka |
| Area
: |
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65,525 sq km |
| Location
: |
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An
island off the south-eastern cost shores of India, 880 km north
of the equator, in the Indian Ocean.
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| Population
: |
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20,926,315 |
| Capital
: |
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Sri Jayewardenepura |
| Commercial
Capital : |
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Colombo |
| Ethnic
groups: |
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74% - Sinhalese, 18%
-Tamils, 7% - Moors, 1% - Others |
| Religions: |
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70 % -Buddhist, 16 %-
Hindu, 07 %- Muslim, 07 % Christian |
| Government
: |
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Democratic.
Legislative power is exercised by a Parliament, elected by universal
franchise on proportional representation basis. A President, who
is also elected by the people, exercises executive powers including
Defence. Sri Lanka enjoys a multi party system, and the people
vote to elect a new government every six years |
| Literacy
rate : |
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91.8% |
| Voltage: |
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230V 50Hz |
| Time
Zone : |
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GMT/UTC + 05:30 |
| Currency
: |
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Sri
Lanka follows the decimal currency system in Rupees (Rs.) and
cents (Cts.) One Rupee is made up of 100 cents. Currency notes
come in the denominations of Rs10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1,000
and 2,000. Coins are issued in values of Cents .1, 2, 5, 10, 25
and 50 and Rs.1, 2, 5 and 10. Although Cents 1,2,5 and even 10
have become almost obsolete The intervention currency continuously
will be the US Dollar |
| Languages: |
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Sinhala, Tamil and English
are widely spoken throughout Sri Lanka, with the exception of
remote villages where either Sinhala or Tamil may only be spoken. |
| Climate
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Lanka generally has a good climate for holiday-makers
throughout the year. The country is divided into wet and dry
zones. In the Lowlands the climate is typically tropical, with
an average temperature of 27 C in Colombo. In the Highlands
temperatures dropping to 14C. Sri Lanka has two monsoons The
south-west monsoon brings rain to the western, southern and
central regions from May to August, while the north-eastern
monsoon brings wet weather to the north and east during the
months of December and January. |
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