Dambana is home to a remote and indigenous community known as the Veddas who are regarded as the original inhabitants of Sri Lanka, and were originally hunter-gatherers. They still live by their ancient traditions, and are almost completely untarnished by modern society. The population of these indigenous 'Vedda' people now consists of only about 350 families, a number significantly reduced from a once thriving community.
The Veddas were originally hunter-gatherers. However during the recent decades, they have been shifting in a slow transformation into Chena dry land for cultivation.