Telecommunications in Sri Lanka commenced in 1858 after the first telegraphic circuit between Colombo and Galle was commenced. The sector continues to grow in the modern times.
Colombo is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, the Colombo metropolitan area has a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 in the Municipality. It is the financial centre of the island and a tourist destination. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to the Greater Colombo area which includes Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, the legislative capital of Sri Lanka, and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. Colombo is often referred to as the capital since Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is itself within the urban/suburban area of Colombo. It is also the administrative capital of the Western Province and the district capital of Colombo District. Colombo is a busy and vibrant city with a mixture of modern life, colonial buildings and monuments.
The Western Province 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. Western Province is the most densely populated province in the country and is home to the legislative capital Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte as well as to Colombo, the nation's administrative and business center.
The University of Colombo is a public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is the oldest institution of modern higher education in Sri Lanka. Specialised in the fields of natural, social, and applied sciences as well as mathematics, computer sciences, and law. It is ranked among the top 10 universities in South Asia.
Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) (Sinhala: බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළ, romanized: Bandāranāyaka Jātyantara Guvantoṭupaḷa; Tamil: பண்டாரநாயக்க சர்வதேச விமான நிலையம், romanized: Paṇṭāranāyakka Carvatēca Vimāṉa Nilaiyam) (commonly known as Colombo International Airport, Colombo–Bandaranaike and locally as Katunayake Airport) (IATA: CMB, ICAO: VCBI) is the main international airport serving Sri Lanka. It is named after former Prime Minister S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike (1899–1959) and is located in a suburb of Negombo, 32.5 kilometres (20+1⁄4 miles) north of the nation's longstanding capital and commercial center, Colombo. It is administered by Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd and serves as the hub of SriLankan Airlines, the national carrier of Sri Lanka, Fitsair, a privately owned low-cost carrier,and domestic carrier Cinnamon Air. The other airport serving the city of Colombo is Ratmalana International Airport.
Colombo District is one of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. The capital of the district is the city of Colombo. The district of Colombo was officially recorded in 2016 as having the highest income on average, per household.
Colombo Cricket Club Ground is a multi-purpose stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is currently used mostly for domestic first-class cricket matches and for hosting warm up matches for touring teams. The stadium can hold 6,000 people and hosted its first Test match in 1984. It is one of the smallest test grounds in the world. Three Test matches have been held at the Colombo Cricket Club Ground.
Art Television Broadcasting Co. is a 24-hour analogue terrestrial television channel in Sri Lanka. A privately owned channel that broadcasts English content has its headquarters located in Colombo. Its coverage is viewed on Frequencies UHF – CH28 in Colombo and UHF – CH52 in Kandy. ART Television is owned by the Sri Lankan business conglomerate IWS Holdings (Private) Limited founded by Indulakshin Wickramasinghe Senanayake.
Battaramulla is situated 8.4 km (5 mi) from the Colombo Fort, near the Parliament of Sri Lanka. It is one of the fastest developing administrative, commercial and residential areas in the Colombo District, being home to the country's elite. Battaramulla is an important town in Sri Lanka, because of the Sri Lankan government's decision to locate all the government department head offices in this town.
Bernadine Rose Senanayake, JP, UM is a Sri Lankan politician, beauty pageant titleholder and activist. She was the Mayor of Colombo from 2018 to 2023, and former Prime Minister's Spokesperson and the Deputy Head of the Prime Minister's Office for Ranil Wickramasinghe. She has been an activist on several issues and an active figure in the opposition gaining much limelight.
The Buddhist is the first Buddhist television channel for Sri Lanka. The Buddhist channel studios are located at Sri Sambodhi Vihara (Temple) that is situated in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is available on the Sri Lankan Direct to Home satellite television services Dialog TV and Dish TV. The service also operates on PEO TV and cable TV. The aim of the channel is to telecast valuable religious and cultural programming in the three main languages of Sri Lanka, English, Sinhala and Tamil. The founder and the Chairman of the Buddhist TV is the most Ven. Daranagama Kusaladhamma Thero. On 29 June 2007, the channel was officially launched by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva and head priest of the Asgiriya chapter in Sri Lanka.
Wickramasinghapura or Wickramasinghepura is a suburb located within Battaramulla in the Western Province of Sri Lanka. It is a suburb of Colombo attached to the Kaduwela Municipal Council. Wickramasinghapura is located in between Pelawatte and Thalawathugoda. Independent Television Network (ITN) is located in Wickramasinghapura.
Fort (Colombo) (කොටුව; கோட்டை) is the central business district of Colombo in Sri Lanka. It is the financial district of Colombo and the location of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and the World Trade Centre of Colombo from which the CSE operates. It is also the location of the Bank of Ceylon headquarters. Along the foreshore of the Fort area is the Galle Face Green Promenade, built in 1859 under the governance of Sir Henry George Ward, the Governor of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during British colonial era. Fort is also home to the General Post Office, hotels, government departments and offices.
Mariazelle Goonetilleke is a Sri Lankan singer and musician.
Fort railway station is a major rail hub in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The station is served by Sri Lanka Railways, with many inter-city and commuter trains entering each day. Fort Station is the main rail gateway to central Colombo; it is the terminus of most intercity trains in the country.
Nagahamulla is a small locality in Pelawatte, Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is also near the Parliament of Sri Lanka.
Lotus Tower, also referred to as Colombo Lotus Tower, is a 351.5 m (1,153 ft) tall tower, located in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It has been called a symbolic landmark of Sri Lanka. As of 2019, the tower is the tallest self-supported structure in South Asia; the second tallest structure in South Asia after the guy-wire-supported INS Kattabomman in India; the 11th tallest tower in Asia and the 19th tallest tower in the world. It was first proposed to be built in the suburb of Peliyagoda but later the Government of Sri Lanka decided to change the location. The lotus-shaped tower is used for communication, observation and other leisure facilities. Construction is estimated to have cost US$113 million.
Bibiladeniye Mahanama Thero is a Buddhist monk of the Theravada Order. The thero is the only Buddhist priest in Asia of the Theravada order to actively engage in the experimentation and the creative exploration of music as a form of aesthetic expression. The thero has been actively engaged with the art, both on overseas projects as well as in Sri Lanka for nearly two decades.
Carlo Fonseka was a Sri Lankan physician, academic and political activist. He was a former dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya and a former president of the Sri Lanka Medical Council.
