Balangoda

Province

Balangoda ( பலங்கொடா ) is adjacent to the capital city of Ratnapura, the only major city in the Ratnapura district within the province Sabaragamuwa Sri Lanka.

Geography and Geology

Balangoda is located about 35 km east of Ratnapura and can be reached via Highway A4. Approximately 11 km to the northeast, the Samanalawewa Dam lies on the River Walawe, which flows through the municipal area from northwest to southeast. The size of the county Balangoda is 272.1 km2.

The bedrock under Balangoda consists of Charnockite. The whole district around Ratnapura and Balangoda also is a known archaeological site for some valuable gems as the Beryllvarietäten Goshenite and Aquamarine, the Chrysoberyllvarietät alexandrite, the Korundvarietäten ruby and sapphire, various minerals of the garnet group, spinel, topaz and zircon. Furthermore, there also baddeleyite, Geikielith, gold, graphite, ilmenite, pyrite, sillimanite and Sinhalit could be detected. For the mineral thorianite Balangoda is also type locality.