Botanical garden admission fees tops Rs. 416.5 m in 2013

M. Nelson Piyaratne Kataragama Group

Director General of National Botanical Gardens, Dr.Cyril Wijesundara said that a record income of Rs 416.5 million has been earned from the national botanical gardens in last year.

He said that this was the highest income recorded in botanical garden history of the country. Dr.Cyril said that out of this income, Rs.314.8 million is from the sale of admission fees from the foreign tourists.

In 2013 there were 2.2 million local and foreign tourists who visited the island's botanical gardens and of them there were 293,454 foreign tourists.

Compared with 2012 there is a development of 13%, said the D.G.

Over 10,750 people visited and Rs.640,800 has been earned from the Mirijjawila dry zone botanical garden which was opened on 14th November Last year. The Avissawella wet zone botanical garden is sheduled to be opened by Minister of Botanical Gardens and Public Entertainment, Priyankara Jayaratne in the first quarter of this year.