Kadugannawa Pass is a mountain pass located near Kadugannawa town in the Central Province of Sri Lanka . It is located along the Colombo-Kandy A1 highway . It is a common roadside stop for tourists to enjoy the vistas to the Kegalle valley below and view the prominent inselberg known as the Bible Rock .
16-754: Kadugannawa Pass is situated at the boundaries of the Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces in Sri Lanka. The pass lies along the Alagalla mountain range and is surrounded by Ambuluwawa, Knuckles and Hanthana Mountain Ranges on its eastern side. To the west is a precipice with vistas over the Kegalle valley of the river Maha Oya with prominent inselbergs Bible Rock (Bathalegala) and Devanagala. Kadugannawa Pass incline begins at 290 feet above sea level passing
32-531: Is disputed, as the Kurunegala tunnel is claimed to have been constructed earlier (in 1823) to fulfill the prophetic saying. Kadugannawa Ambalama is a historic ambalama built a few metres below the Kadugannawa tunnel. It was built in the early 18th century during British colonial rule. During the 19th century it served as a common stopover for horsemen and merchants passing through Kadugannawa pass. It
48-775: Is located primarily in the central mountainous terrain of Sri Lanka. It is bordered by the North Central Province to the north, the Uva Province to the east, the North Western Province to the west and the Sabaragamuwa Province to the south and west. The province is famous for its production of Ceylon tea , where plantation was initiated by the British in the 1860s after a devastating disease killed all coffee plantations in
64-546: Is preserved as archaeological protected monument by the Department of Archeology of Sri Lanka Central Province, Sri Lanka The Central Province ( Sinhala : මධ්යම පළාත Madhyama Paḷāta , Tamil : மத்திய மாகாணம் Maddiya Mākāṇam ) is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka . The province has an area of 5,674 km and a population of 2,421,148, making it the 2nd most populated province. The city of Kandy stands as its capital since 1469. The Central Province
80-597: The British conquered the Kingdom of Kandy . The British then established a colonial headman ranking system in 1824, which came into effect in 1832. The provinces of Sri Lanka were established by the British in 1833. In independent Sri Lanka, provinces did not have any legal status or power until 1987, when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils . The Mudaliyar Office
96-580: The Central Highlands of Sri Lanka . The mountain of Pidurutalagala , an ultra-prominent peak and the tallest mountain in Sri Lanka at 2,524 m (8,281 ft), is also located in the Central Province. The Central Province has a relatively cooler climate, and many areas above 1,500 metres often have chilly nights. The western slopes are very wet, some places have almost 7,000 mm of rain per year. The eastern slopes are parts of
112-657: The 1820s led by Captain Dawson . When the British built the new Colombo-Kandy road they decided to pierce a rock at the Kadugannawa Pass instead of blasting it away or simply bypassing it, as the new road does today. This rock piercing is known as the Kadugannawa Tunnel and is still preserved though a bypass road was built around it when the Colombo-Kandy A1 highway was widened and upgraded in
128-474: The 2012 Sri Lankan census, there were 1,672,625 Buddhists , 540,339 Hindus , 263,874 Muslims , 94,402 Christians and 317 people following other faiths in the Central Province. The Central Province is divided into three districts and 36 divisional secretariats . The districts of the Sri Lanka are divided into administrative sub-units known as divisional secretariats . These were originally based on
144-524: The Higula near Mawanella by road or Rambukkana station by train. The road and rail tracks winds up through rugged terrain and reaches its peak near Kadugannawa Dawson Tower at 1690 feet above sea level. The Kadugannawa Pass was a lookout point in the Kingdom of Kandy . The Balana fort which was the main fortress established to protect the Kandian Kingdom from foreign powers was situated near
160-513: The Kadugannawa pass. The British were the first foreign power to occupy Kingdom of Kandy permanently. British Governor Edward Barnes wanted a new road built to Kandy as the old road was long and circuitous. The old road was along the Kelani river valley , via Ruwanwella to the Ma Oya valley, then up the incline to Gampola and on to Kandy. The new road was built through Kadugannawa mountain pass in
176-531: The feudal counties , the korales and ratas . They were formerly known as 'DRO Divisions' after the 'Divisional Revenue Officer'. Later the DROs became 'Assistant Government Agents' and the Divisions were known as 'AGA Divisions'. Currently, the divisions are administered by a 'Divisional Secretary' and are known as a 'DS Divisions'. There are 36 divisional secretariats in Central Province. There are 20 in
SECTION 10
#1732781181499192-834: The historic town of Matale , the Temple of the Tooth , the Dambulla cave temple , the Aluwihare temple and the Sigiriya rock fortress . The province has an area of 5,674 km and a population of 2,421,148. Major towns include Kandy , Matale , Dambulla , Gampola , Nuwara Eliya and Hatton . The terrain of the Central Province is mostly mountainous, with deep valleys cutting into it. The Knuckles Mountain Range , Adam's Peak and Horton Plains are UNESCO World Heritage Sites located in
208-432: The late 1980s. An explanation for piercing the rock is that the Kadugannawa tunnel was a symbol. The tunnel is said to have been created to fulfill an old Sinhalese prophecy that there is no way to foreigners to rule Kandy, unless they pierce the mountains. The British were the first foreign power to occupy Kandy permanently. Thus, the British went out of their way to include a tunnel on the road. Regrettably, this nice story
224-715: The mid-dry zone and receives rain only from the North-Eastern monsoon. Temperatures range from 24 °C in Kandy to 16 °C in Nuwara Eliya, which is 1,889 m above sea level. The Central Province is an ethnically diverse province, with a mixture of Sinhalese , Tamil and Moor communities. Many tea plantation workers are Indian Tamils , brought over to Sri Lanka by the British in the 19th century. Ethnic groups in Central Province, Sri Lanka (2012 census) Religion in Central Province, Sri Lanka (2012 Census) As per
240-400: The province. The province attracts many tourists, with hill station towns such as Gampola , Hatton and Nuwara Eliya . The province is home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sites . Though three successive European powers invaded and established colonies on the island of Sri Lanka between the 16th and 19th centuries, the central province managed to maintain its independence until 1815, when
256-423: Was abolished in 1924 and the last of the colonial headmen retired from their positions and gave up the rule to the British officers in 1926. All headman positions were then passed down to the newly elected governor-general of the Central Province. This was established in 1929 as a way for the British to directly rule the provinces. The central province is home to many sites historical and cultural importance, such as
#498501