|
 Banja Luka is the biggest town, economical and cultural centre of the
Republic of Srpska and the second biggest town in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Before the war the area of Banja Luka, which covers 1239 square kilometres,
had population of 195000. Today, the population has reached 237000, out of
which 65000 are refugees from other areas.
Banja Luka is spreads over both banks of the Vrbas river, in the tectonic
valley that spreads North East - South West, which is separated by the
Laktasi Ravine from the Lijevce Valley in Posavina. The valley is longish, 5
kilometres wide at the widest part. The city has developed at the Southern
part of the valley, at
 the place where the river Vrbas leaves the canyon and
goes into the valley. The river flows almost through the centre of the town.
The city itself covers approximately 150 square kilometres, and the
co-ordinates are 44o46'27'' LAT and 17o11'44'' LON. The average altitude is
164 meters.
Banja Luka is an important crossroads and a passing point for many railway
lines. With the airport and the harbour on river Sava in the town of
Gradiska, 50 kilometres away, Banja Luka is a centre that contacts the
Adriatic Sea with the Central Europe and Western Republic of Srpska with the
Eastern Europe and Serbia.
|
