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| Sunday, 10 July 2005 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Significance of Avukana Buddha statue
The temples, dagabas, statues and tanks of the good old days are our cultural heritage, pride and identity. Of these the statues have their own contribution and the colossal standing Buddhas are very significant. The statue of the Buddha found at Avukana is one of the five colossal standing Buddhas in the Anuradhapura district. It is 170 kilometers from Colombo. The other four being, the standing Buddha at Rasvehera in the Anuradhapura district, Maligavila and Buduruvagala in the Moneragala district and the Buddha at Dova Royal temple in the Badulla district. The massive Buddha at Avukana, on the Kalaweva-Galnawa road carved out of a rock is situated to the east facing Kalawewa, an artificial lake built by King Dhatusena (459-477 AC). This statue is 11.36 metres high, from the lotus seat to the top of the head. The ruins in the building suggest that the roof was vaulted and built by using wedged shaped bricks, placed above the preserved stone walls. The hammock of granite found opposite the entrance to the chamber suggests that stairs or steps were built to provide direct access to the chamber of the image house. The present image house was built in 1976 by the Department of Archaeology. There is a difference of opinion among modern writers on the Avukana Buddha statue. Some say this belongs to the 12th century and is supposed to have been built by King Parakramabahu I. The late Senarat Paranavitana, the then Archaeological Commissioner in 1949 dates the image and the shrine to the second half of the fifth century. However, in 1952 the discovery of the inscription on a granite slab on to the northern wall of the shrine, attributed this work to the eighth century AC. In the light of this discovery, Paranavitana in one of his reports of 1952, says that this Buddha statue was built during an earlier period than the shrine, based on these conclusions on the assumption that the finest Buddha images in Sri Lanka belong to the pre-Polonnaruva period of the 3rd, 4th and 5th centuries before the so-called dark ages and during the hay days of the Anuaradhapura culture. ######### Emirates invests $38.8 million to build luxury conservation resort in Australia Emirates, the Dubai-based international airline, will invest Dhs 142 million (approx. US$38.8 million) to build a luxury conservation resort in Australia's Blue Mountains - its first such hospitality development outside the UAE. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman of Emirates, and Sandra Nori MP, New South Wales' Minister for Tourism, recently unveiled the resort's development plans at a media conference in Sydney. Using the same philosophy as Emirates' acclaimed "Al Maha" desert resort and reserve in Dubai, the new conservation project will be one of Australia's most environmentally sympathetic developments, and will provide world-leading hospitality facilities and services to guests. The project is in the Wolgan Valley of the Blue Mountains, where 3,600 acres of freehold land will be incorporated into a conservancy reserve. The site is currently farmland that borders the Gardens of Stone National Park, in an area where there are many threats to wildlife and conservation. Guest facilities will occupy less than two per cent of the total land. Sheikh Ahmed said: "We want to take this beautiful, but sadly distressed rural farming site and turn it into a sanctuary to further showcase Australia to the world." "Emirates' plan is to protect this site and enhance its environmental values, starting with the removal of invasive plants and feral fauna that has placed pressure on indigenous wildlife. Working closely with environmental and government agencies, we even hope to reintroduce some threatened species to this conservancy. We want this project to gain the same recognition for Australia that we have received for Al Maha and the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve in Dubai," he said. The resort is expected to have all final government approvals in place in the next few months with the opening planned for 2007. NSW Minister for Tourism Ms Nori said the Blue Mountains resort would be a welcome addition to nature-based tourism and a major draw card for international visitors. She said: "Few global cities can boast a pristine, World-Heritage listed attraction such as the Blue Mountains, on their doorstep, just over an hour from the centre of Sydney. This conservation resort will show there's no place in the world like Sydney. The resort will also generate jobs - from environmental guides to hotel staff. And of course, local businesses in the region also stand to benefit," she said. ######## 'Twice as Nice' to promote BA doubling its capacity to India British Airways (BA) invited their Preferred Partners in India to visit Sri Lanka for a conference on the theme "Twice as Nice", to promote the airline doubling its capacity to India, and to celebrate the success of the Preferred Partner Agents for 2004/2005. One hundred and fifty Indian agents were hosted by British Airways for the two-day conference which was followed by an Awards Night. The guest speaker Nolan W. Burriss spoke on "The Success of Travel Agents within a Reduced Commission Environment," at Water's Edge. British Airways Top 20 Travel Agents in Sri Lanka also participated in the series of events which were co-sponsored by Amadeus India. "Hosting this conference and awards ceremony in Colombo helped British Airways showcase Sri Lanka and its varied products to the Indian travel agents. It helped us encapsulate and focus on the many options available to visitors coming here," said British Airways Country Commercial Manager - Sri Lanka and Maldives, Joe Rajadurai. |
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