Mattegoda is a town in

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: *Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provinc ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. It is located a short distance south-east of

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

. It is well known for the housing scheme situated in there. The nearest major town is

Kottawa Kottawa (, ) is one of the main suburbs in Colombo, Sri Lanka and is administered by the Maharagama Urban Council. It is located from the centre of Colombo. It is a Road junction, five-way junction and lies as the epicenter for Maharagama road, H ...

History

Mattegoda has been an underdeveloped area with mainly coconut estates until the then government built a housing scheme in the late 1980s. This dramatically increased the population and turned the sparsely populated area to a small town. Today Mattegoda is a very popular residential area for middle-class and upper-middle-class families due to its close proximity to Colombo and relative quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

Location

The closest big town is

on the high level road which is about 3 km away. Mattegoda also connects to Polgasowita junction on the Colombo-Horana road.

Government

Mattegoda belongs to the Homagama Divisional Secretariat.

Demographics

The population of Mattegoda was mainly due to the housing scheme. But in the last decade increasing number of people have moved in and today is very much populated by a mixture of working class, middle and upper-middle-class families. In addition a lot of artists (Singers, actors etc.) live in Mattegoda in housing given by the government. Also Mattegoda is home to a

Sri Lanka Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; ...

camp. The population is mainly Sinhalese with a small Malay population. Most Sinhalese are Buddhist while a significant minority is Catholic. There are several Buddhist temples in and around Mattegoda. The Catholics have the St Jude's Catholic church which belong to the Pannipitiya parish. There is also a sizable Muslim population which includes Malays. Mattegoda has a small mosque.

Economy

Mattegoda is mainly a residential area. The main economic activity is retail and other service sectors. The Alpha factory complex which manufactures metal furniture is a key employer in the area. Also there is a small garment factory. Arpico factory can be found near the Mattegoda Army Camp.

Transport

Public bus service is available connecting Mattegoda to Colombo. The route number is 138/2 and it takes the high level road. In addition the 342 route number buses from Kottawa to Piliyandala also pass through Mattegoda. The Southern express way is also accessible from Mattegoda by Kottawa and Kahatuduwa exit points.

Education

There is a small government run school just outside Mattegoda and the closest schools are in Kottawa and Pannipitiya towns. Most school children in Mattegoda attend schools in Colombo.

Banking and Finance

Sampath Bank Sampath Bank PLC (, ) is a licensed commercial bank incorporated in Sri Lanka in 1987 with 229 branches and 373 ATMs island-wide. It has won the "Bank of the Year" award by ''The Banker'' of ''Financial Times Limited – London'', for two conse ...

branch is located in Mattegoda Also branches of BOC, Commercial and Peoples Banks are located.

Communication

Mattegoda has good wireless mobile coverage from most mobile operators in Sri Lanka. A

Sri Lanka Telecom Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (, ), doing business as SLTMobitel, is the national telecommunications services provider in Sri Lanka and one of the country's largest companies with an annual turnover in excess of Rs 100 billion. The company provides dom ...

station is also located providing fixed telephone connections. Mattegoda also has a post office.

Notable people

* Upul Shantha Sannasgala (lyricist, Author, YouTube personality) *

Rookantha Gunathilaka Mario Glory Rookantha Goonatillake (born 5 September 1959: ) is a Sri Lankan singer, musician, and songwriter, widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the country’s music industry. Known for his innovative contributions to S ...

(Singer), * Dennis Perera (Film Director, Dramatist), *

Prasanna Vithanage Udaya Prasanna Vithanage () (born 14 March 1962) is a Sri Lankan filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most talented and influential filmmakers in South Asia. He is known for thought-provoking films that often deals with social, polit ...

(Film Director)

References

Populated places in Western Province, Sri Lanka {{WesternLK-geo-stub