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| Sunday, 4 September 2005 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Sea ports... Colombo Port among the top 35 in the world
For over centuries, Sri Lanka has been engaged in international trade through its network of ports. These ports include Mantota, Devundara, Weligama, Galle and Kankasanthurai. Colombo began to be a major port from the middle of the 10th century, during the reign of King Parakramabahu I. With the progress of time, especially with the trading activities pursued by the Arab traders, Colombo became a busy port. It became the centre of the export trade. The city of Colombo derives its name from the Port of Kolomtota (Colombo harbour), which dates back to the Sinhalese Kotte kingdom of the 14th century. Kolomtota was the port first used by merchants from China and the Far East, India and Persia, who came to trade in the island's famous spices. In 1505, however, 443 years of foreign occupation began in Sri Lanka, then known as Ceylon, when the Portuguese fleet sailed into Colombo's harbour. After more than a century and a half, the Dutch followed and occupied the country from 1656 to 1796. Then came the British, ruling the region as a colony until a few years after World War II. With the advent of the British in 1796, the Colombo port came into limelight through the heavy volume of import and export trade. To meet the challenge of the ever-increasing trade, the development of the port was given priority.It was during the latter part of the British rule that the Port of Colombo was upgraded and converted to a sheltered harbour. After independence was granted in 1948, the Port was expanded with the construction of the Queen Elizabeth Quay together with the completion of 16 alongside berths, transit sheds, and warehouses. The 1980s saw the Port undergo rapid modernisation with the installation of cranes, gantries and other staples of a contemporary container terminal. This progress was to continue into the 90s with the deepening of the access channel, and improving throughput to record levels. To this day, the Port of Colombo is rated as one of the top 35 ports in the world.In 1979 the Sri Lanka Ports Authority was established. Major facilities for transhipment and handling of containers soon had to be provided in the development of the port. Transportation of cargo got diversified to include break-bulk, general cargo, feeder vessels, main line vessels, bulk ships and container ships.Gigantic cranes are used for the loading and unloading of cargo. Clearing agencies engage in the clearing and dispatch of cargo to their respective owners. For the purpose of administration, the Colombo Port is split into 22 divisions. The port town of Galle in the southwest of Sri Lanka has a splendid natural harbour. The port was in use in pre-Christian times, but gained in importance after the 12th century. By the 14th century it was arguably the most important port in the country, and it retained this prominence until 1873 when an artificial harbour was built in Colombo. The great Chinese admiral, Zheng He commemorated his visit by leaving a trilingual inscription in 1411; the three languages were Chinese, Tamil, and Arabic, implying a cosmopolitan trading community. The Portuguese arrived in 1505, and later built a small fort; but it was after Galle was captured by the Dutch in 1640, that the city rose to its greatest prosperity. The Dutch rebuilt the town and strengthened the fortifications. The English took over in 1796 but made few changes to the infrastructure. Among the Asian ports of the United Dutch East India Company (Verenigde Oost Indische Compagnie, or VOC), Galle was second only to Batavia (now Jakarta). Facts provided by J.A.W.S. Jayasinghe - SLPA |
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Sri Lanka has four commercial ports, Colombo, Galle, Trincomalee and
Kankasanthurai. These ports are managed by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority.
Being strategically situated, the port of Colombo forms a base for
transhipment activities. 
