Write a brief note on the population of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka is an island, just a few kilometres away from India. Its population is about 2 crores. The people of Sri Lanka are of diverse origin. Among this, 74 per cent are Sinhala-speakers and 18 per cent are the Tamil-speakers. Among Tamils there are two sub-groups. 'Sri Lankan Tamils' who constitute 13 per cent of the population are the Tamil natives of the country. The rest of the Tamils are 'Indian Tamils', whose forefathers came from India as plantation workers during the colonial period. While most of the Tamils are Hindus or Muslims, most of the Sinhala-speaking people follow Buddhism. There are both Tamil and Sinhala who make up about 7 per cent of the population, and they follow Christianity.