Labour force in Sri Lanka 1946-1981

Abstract

Sri Lanka is an island of 25,330 square miles, located eighteen miles off the south-western tip of the Indian subcontinent. It lies between the parallels of 5° and 10° north latitude, and the meridians of 79° and 82° east longitude. The island measures 270 miles from North to South and 140 miles from East to West. About four-fifths of the island consists of plain land or gently undulating lowland along the coastal belt, while the remaining one-fifth consists of hills and mountains in the central region. Climatically, the island can be divided into two zones: wet and dry. The wet zone, which comprises the west coast and the central highlands, receives from about 100" to 200" annual average rainfall, and the dry zone (approximately three quarters of the country) receives from 50" to 75" annual average rainfall. The climate is generally warm and humid, with an annual average temperature ranging between 78⁰ and 85⁰ Fahrenheit. Sri Lanka achieved political independence in 1948 after 443 years of foreign domination. During this period the country was under three foreign powers: first, the Portuguese - 1505 to 1655; secondly, the Dutch - 1656 to 1795; and finally the British - 1796 to 1947. The Portuguese and the Dutch were able to take control of only the maritime provinces along the coastal belt. Several attempts to take control of the central highlands were made, but were resisted by the local kings. However, the British were able to overthrow the Sinhalese kingdom and to establish dominion over the entire island in 1815. Reliable demographic history of Sri Lanka dates back to 1871 when the first census was conducted on modern lines (Sarkar, 1957, p.19)* Since then regular decennial censuses have been conducted until the series was interrupted in 1931 and 1941 by the Great Depression and the Second World War. However, the population of the capital city, Colombo, was enumerated in 1931, and the total population was estimated accordingly. The census which should have been held in 1941 was carried out in 1946. The first census after independence was held in 1953, and the next followed 10 years later, in 1963. The latest census was taken in 1971, completing a century of demographic history.