Bibile (also Bibila) is an attractive tourist destination located in Monaragala District, Uva Province of Sri Lanka. It was called Wellassa during the Kandy kingdom, which related to 100,000 paddy fields. The agricultural region was historically known for cultivating rice and a variety of orange (citrus sinensis) called Bibile Sweet.[1]
Bibile
බිබිලේ (Bibila) | |
|---|---|
 Bibile Town | |
| Motto(s): A beautiful and attractive tourist destination. Dorapoda mountain ranges, Kotasara Piyangala Raja Maha Viharaya and Mallipotha lake are few of the popular attractions in the area. Little Worlds End looks over Kotagama villege through Dorapoda mountain ranges. | |
 | |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Province | Uva Province |
| District | Monaragala District |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (Sri Lanka Time) |
Population
editAs of 2012, the total population of Bibile was 36,404.[2]
Economy
editIn the 1990s, gem shops were opening on the main high street in Bibile.[3] Mining near Bibile has extracted geuda and yellow sapphire.[4]
In recent years, local corn farmers have opposed attempts by foreign multinationals to acquire agricultural lands to build a sugar factory.[5]
Education
editBibile Madya Maha Vidayalaya (known as Wellassa National College) is one of the main schools in bibile.
In 2024, the DP Foundation opened what it billed as the "Sri Lanka's first digital pre-school" in Bibile, as well as an IT campus at Bibile Wagama Sri Saddaramalankara Pirivena.[6]
In popular culture
editBibile was known as 'Sinhale' in Martin Wickremesinghe's novel "Gamperaliya".[citation needed]
Notable people
edit- Professor Senaka Bibile, whose father was from Bibile
- Sarath Kotagama
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Dharmarathne, Chathuranga; Fernando, Chandima; Weerasinghe, Chinthaka; Corea, Ravi (2020). "Project orange elephant is a conflict specific holistic approach to mitigating human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka". Communications Biology. 3 (1): 43. doi:10.1038/s42003-020-0760-4. PMC 6978409. PMID 31974509.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing, 2012" (PDF). Department of Census and Statistics. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ De Munck, Victor C. (1993). Seasonal Cycles: A Study of Social Change and Continuity in a Sri Lankan Village. Asian Educational Services. p. 7. ISBN 9788120608160. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ Pardieu, Vincent (Fall 2011). "Update on sapphire mining in Sri Lanka". Gems & Gemology. Vol. 47, no. 3. pp. 248–249. Retrieved 21 May 2024 – via EBSCOHost.
- ^ Perera, Yoshitha (13 November 2022). "Bibile corn farmers rail against foreign firm's land grab for sugar factory". The Sunday Times. Sri Lanka. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "DP Education opens Sri Lanka's first digital preschool in Bibile". Daily FT. Sri Lanka. 18 April 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.