A Red sandalwood tree to become a monk

Red sandalwood tree in the Badulla town ( about 134 km from Colombo city) in the Uva province is more than 400 years old. According to some people this is oldest red sandalwood tree in Asia. This has auctioned by the government authorities for 30 million Rupees. People and the Buddhist monks in the area, ordinate the tree( make a monk) on January 2011 to protect it. The tree now will be treated as a Buddhist monk.

This is the second time in the Sri Lankan history that a tree was converted to a monk. It was first done in a village called Nawalakanda along Matugama Rathnapura Road to protect a “Bulu” (Terminalia bellirica) tree from cutting down for “Kukulu Ganga” Development Project.

Road construction in the Badulla town has cut down many trees already. It is the usual practice of the Road Development Authority (RDA) to cut down trees for road development.

Red sandalwood is famous in Indian cosmetic industry and for religious purposes.