Kotte
From Freepedia
Sri Jayewardenepura-Kotte, also known as Kotte, is the legislative capital of Sri Lanka. It is located at 6° 54' north, 79° 54' east (6.9, 79.9), after the eastern suburbs of the business capital Colombo. The Parliament of Sri Lanka has been based here since the formal inauguration of its new building on 29 April 1982.
History
Kotte (meaning 'Fortress') was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Kotte from the 14th to the 16th centuries. Situated in a marshland, it was founded on the banks of the Diyawanna Oya river as a fortress against invasions from the Jaffna Kingdom of Arya Chakravarthy in the 13th century by a Tamil chief named Alagakkonara. Alagakkonara is mentioned by Ibn Batuta as ruling in Kurunegala, but other sources indicate that he was the Bandara (Guardian) of Raigama Korale (county) in the modern Kalutara District. Arya Chakravarthy's army was held by Alagakkonara in front of Kotte, while he defeated the enemy's invasion fleet at Panadura to the south-west.
Kotte was a jala durgha (water fortress), in the shape of a triangle, with the Diyawanna Oya marshes forming two long sides; along the shorter third (land) side a large moat (the 'inner moat') was dug. It was fortified with ramparts of kabook or laterite rock all round. The area outside the inner moat was called Pitakotte (outer fort), the area inside being Ethul Kotte (inner fort).
Later the city became the capital of the island, and was renamed Sri Jayawardanapura, meaning "the great city of victory." The Portuguese arrived on the island in 1505 and had control of the city by 1565. Failing to withstand repeated assaults by the forces of the neighbouring kingdom of Sitawaka (Avissawella), the city was abandoned by the Portuguese, who made Colombo their new capital.
The urbanization of Kotte restarted in the 19th century. The archaeological remains were torn up and used as building materials (a process that continues) - some of it ending up in the Victoria Bridge, across the Kelani River. The Kotte Urban Development Council was created in the 1930s, with a modern building at Welikada. It was succeeded by the Kotte Urban Council, which had a large section of its area removed and tagged onto the Colombo Municipal Council ward of Borella.
After being chosen as the new capital by the new government of 1977, a massive lake was formed by dredging the marshlands around the city. The new parliamentary buildings were built on an island in the centre of the lake. The process of relocating government institutions from the former capital of Colombo is still in progress. The population of the city now stands at about 110,000 (2001 census).
The Kotte Urban Council became the Sri Jayawardanapura Kotte Municipal Council in 1997.
Municipal Structure
The Mayor is JM Somadasa. There are 20 Members of the Municipal Council (MMCs), elected on proportional representation. There are 10 wards, but these are now merely polling divisions, without individual representation.
