INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized that the standards of Sri Lankan universities were high on the list of Asian universities, the
He said that for many of the people during his time, the United Kingdom was a second choice, if not the first, after the University of
Even if they are selected for a university, they are trying to go abroad, he said.The President highlighted the need for fixing the issues
with the educational system in this nation and added that conditions should be put in place so that everyone can complete their education at
the appropriate age and move on.President Wickremesinghe stressed the importance of being attentive to the South Asian population
The poverty level will decrease, while the better income number will increase
India will have nothing else to do if they are going to provide education for all of them, so they will either use other techniques
Therefore, Sri Lanka must be vigilant in these areas
by the Chairman of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Directors Sri Lanka (CVCD), Professor Sujeeva Amarasena, the Vice Chancellor of
Nilanthi De Silva, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, introduced the award ceremony in detail.President Ranil Wickremesinghe was
appreciated by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Directors (CVCD), Sri Lanka, for his excellent leadership and commitment in
establishing an innovative research culture within the university system.Organized biennially by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and
innovation, and invention by scholars in the Sri Lankan university system.
The awards are presented in three categories: Most
Outstanding Senior Researcher and Most Outstanding Young Researcher Awards for the year 2022, Allied Health Sciences and Indigenous
Medicine, Engineering, Architecture, and Technology, Humanities, Life Sciences, Management Studies, Medicine, and Dentistry, were awarded
for eight fields of study: natural sciences, social sciences, and legal studies.Accordingly, Prof
Perera (University of Moratuwa), Prof
Deepti Yakandawala (University of Peradeniya), Prof
Arosha Sarangi Adikaram (University of Colombo), Prof
Shaman Rajindrajith (University of Colombo), L
Wijesundara (University of Kelaniya), and Prof S
Karunanayake (Open University) received the Most Outstanding Senior Researcher Award.Dr
Madushanka (University of Peradeniya), Dr
Asanka Sanjeeva (Sri Jayawardenepura University), Dr
Sanjeeva Samaratunga (Rajarata University), Dr
Kavinda Chandimal Dayasiri (University of Kelaniya), and Prof
Sandaruwan Ratnayake (University of Uva Wellassa) received the Most Outstanding Young Researcher Award.University of Moratuwa Professor
Rangika Umesh Halwathura won the Most Outstanding Inventor Award.Vavuniya University Vice Chancellor Professor T
Mangaleswaran delivered the speech of thanks, and members of the committee of Sri Lanka Vice Chancellors and Directors, family members of
was thinking back to the time that I had finished A-levels and sat for the exam
My father also insisted that I take the London A-level, which was held in Madras
So, I flew to Madras and sat for the London A-Level
But at the same time, I received the results of the Sri Lankan, as you called it, Ceylon A-levels, and I found that I had gotten into the
university and had been selected.It was a simple system then
In none of these marking systems, all those who got four subject passes went in first, followed by those who got three subjects
I also got my A-level results from London A-level
I applied through UCCA, and there was one university that was prepared to take me based on Sri Lankan A-level results.And others certainly
considered me based on my London A-level results
So, I had to make a decision whether I was going to stay here or go to the UK
I really thought of staying in Sri Lanka
I felt that if I am to do law, it has to be in Colombo
Otherwise, I have to go on to another subject, like economics or history
So, I am telling you, I never studied economics.When I look back, I think that at that time, a lot of people told me this was a good degree
The dean of that time, the professor of law, Professor Nadarajah, was the leading exponent of Roman Dutch law after Professor Lee died
We had a number of lecturers, the youngest, of course, being a young temporary assistant lecturer called G.L
Even if selected by a university
For many of us in the UK, it was a second choice if you were not selected for the University of Ceylon.But it is not, so today, having
So, this is a crisis in the university system
So we have to look at the university system and what the role of education is first, then look at the local issues.As I asked the chairman,
we have about 170,000 qualifying for the A-levels; of that, 40,000 get into universities here, and another 30, 000 to 40,000 go to
Are we going to have a system of universities coming under the UGC and universities outside the UGC, some for profit and others not for
But then we find that another group of students equal to the number in the universities is going outside and paying money
So, is this the best way we have? We must preserve one right, which is in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: universal access to
But different countries have different ways of doing it
Some give student loans; some help students who have economic issues but allow the others to go ahead
So, are we to study? I think we have to study all these systems and then ensure the government makes the funding available.Look at the best
system available for the maximum number to get their education
large number of doctors, and a large number of scientists
have.Secondly, one of the standards is: where are we now? When I went to university, our universities were high up on the list of Asian
How are you going to improve our performance? How are we going to ensure that these universities have a good reputation and standing?Then
How do the state universities function with disruptions and vice chancellors getting assaulted? That cannot happen
I think at some point we have to face these issues and resolve them
I was 21 when I sat for my degree, 22 when I got the results, and we were not awarded degrees because they were from 1971, and 23 when I
That means the best part of your life You spend time at the university, then go to find a job
So these issues had to be resolved
Then you will find the non-UGC universities coming up, and then they get students because the job market is there.Now, this is a problem not
only for the UGC universities here but also for many universities abroad
But we had to find our own solution and not wait to see what others were going to do with regard to the universities
Then comes the issue of remuneration
Your main issue has been the present taxation, but another one that has been raised in universities is how you would pay your academic staff
In Western universities, each one is judged to be worth something in the market, and given that, are we to do that? Or are we going to carry
on with this same system? As far as the non-UGC universities are concerned, I have no doubt that they will decide what the pay should be for
each individual.These are the issues that we have to face
And then the research that is being done: how are the peer reviews? What are the standards? There are allegations regarding some of the
research items that have been made, and all that has to be cleared
With that came the change
They produced the University of Ceylon History in four volumes
Some are maybe out of date, nevertheless, look at all the rest of it that they produced at the University of Ceylon
issues that we have to think about
Outside of that, there is the question that every university has to face today
What is a university? How do you educate? You had social media; you had it online.You have AI, and you have chat GBT, which people use for
exams and some for their postgraduate research
So, can these brick-and-mortar institutes suffice? Or are we to use the technology? This is another issue that we have to take up
So, my effort is to ensure that you are focused on this and come up with solutions.If you look at the population of South Asia in 2050,
And that poverty level will decrease, and better income numbers will increase
This will happen in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Myanmar, and the East African nations
India will have nothing else to do if they are going to provide education for all of them, so they will either use other techniques
So, we have to be sure of that
But if we have a sufficient number of universities, we can cater to some of them from those areas
Now they are catering to our needs
But there may come a time when we have to cater to their needs.So, these are the issues we have to think of because the structure of the
universities will no longer be the same
There was a big debate originally about the first university in Ceylon, whether it was to be residential or not
But if you look at the newer universities, all the residents are no longer there.Now, the question is not whether they are going to be halls
Will there be halls for lectures?So, we have to address these issues and find solutions because we have appointed a Cabinet Committee on
Education, which is going into all the issues
but I must congratulate all those who got the awards here.What you have done is to raise the reputation of Sri Lankan universities for
research, and taking that into account, we will make more money available for research
I thought I would put about a billion aside for a year
