Captain Samangi Vidanage of the Sri Lanka Army Women’s Corps made history when she passed out as a paratrooper from the Commando Regiment Training School in Uva Kuda Oya in December 2009 becoming the very first female officer in Sri Lanka to do so.
Prince Vijaya landed on the north-western coast of Sri Lanka in 543 BC and met Kuveni, the Yakkha princess of the area. Thambapanni – the beach with copper sand and Kali Villu where Kuweni had her palace are located inside the park boundaries of Wilpattu.