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Peradeniya University initiates Endowed Professorship Scheme

The University of Peradeniya has launched an Endowed Professorship scheme, a first for Sri Lanka.
At the 30th iPURSE research conference at Peradeniya concluded recently, the University initiated the Endowed Professorship scheme. The Professor Lakshman Samaranayake, a Professor Emeritus from the University of Hong Kong and an esteemed alumnus of the University’s Faculty of Dental Sciences, donated five million rupees from his personal funds for the scheme.
Although relatively unfamiliar in Sri Lanka, endowed professorships are a revered tradition in prestigious universities worldwide, such as Harvard University in the USA and the University of Oxford in the UK. Historically, these professorships date back to AD 176 with Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, and in more recent times, they were established at the University of Oxford in 1505 and later at Harvard University in 1721.
Endowed professorships bring essential research funding to the University from private funds and industrialists. The endowment, typically a substantial sum of money, is invested, and the income generated is utilized to sustain a named professorship, in perpetuity.
These professorships are often established to attract and retain top faculty members by offering additional resources and recognition. The funds from the endowment can support the professor’s salary, research activities, travel expenses, and other scholarly pursuits, enhancing the institution’s reputation and prestige.
Endowed professorships also play a crucial role in ensuring stability and continuity in key academic positions by providing a reliable source of long-term funding. The title of the Endowed Professor can be named after the donor, their loved ones, or an industry leader who contributed to the professorship.
Following Professor Samaranayake’s initial donation, additional alumni generously contributed twenty million Rupees, creating an initial foundation of 25 million Rupees earmarked for the research foundation.
At the iPURSe ceremony, Professor Samaranayake said, “I hope our current efforts will grow into a robust foundation, inspiring a culture of philanthropy among philanthropists and industry leaders for the benefit of Peradeniya University and the wider Sri Lankan university landscape. Given our resource-limited environment, public funding alone cannot uphold high-calibre research, making such contributions vital in retaining our talented researchers and preventing brain drain.”
Further information on the endowed professorship scheme could be obtained from Professor Janaka Ekanayake, Director, University Research Council, University of Peradeniya.
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French Navy Ship PROVENCE arrives in Port of Colombo

The French Navy Ship PROVENCE arrived at the Port of Colombo on a formal visit on Sunday (16 Mar 25) morning.
She was welcomed by the Sri Lanka Navy in compliance with the time-honoured naval traditions.
The 142.20m long Destroyer is Commanded by Captain Lionel SIEGFRIED and manned by a crew of 160 members.
During the stay in the island, crew members of PROVENCE will visit some tourist hotspots in the country and the ship is scheduled to depart the island on 20 Mar.
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Court of Appeal dismisses Ex-IGP’s writ petition

The Court of Appeal this [17] morning dismissed the writ petition filed by former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Deshabandu Tennakoon, seeking an interim injunction to prevent the execution of the arrest order issued by the Matara Magistrate’s Court against him.
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Project to distribute smart boards for 1,000 schools with the goal of enhancing education has completely failed to meet its objectives and the investment of LKR 1.7 billion has been underutilized -PM

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that the project to distribute smart boards for 1,000 schools with the goal of enhancing education has completely failed to meet its objectives and the investment of LKR 1.7 billion has been underutilized.
The Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya made these remarks in the Parliament complex on Saturday [March 15, 2025] while discussing the project to establish networked classrooms by facilitating smart boards to the school system.
The Cabinet Memorandum No. AMP/24/0385/601/027 and the Cabinet decision dated March 4, 2024 has been presented for the approval of the provision of digital smart boards and other related equipment to 1,000 selected schools, with the objective of enhancing education through the establishment of a systematic network of smart classrooms within the school system funded by the Sri Lanka Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRCSL).
Subsequently, an additional Cabinet Memorandum, No. AMP/24/0978/630/009, dated May 14, 2024, was presented, proposing the implementation of this project in alignment with the project proposed by Chinese government for digitalizing Schools. Under this Chinese-funded project, plans were made to establish a centralized control center and a studio facility, along with the provision of an additional 500 smart boards. Accordingly, the integration of both projects was proposed to create a network of smart classrooms across 1,500 schools.
The cabinet decision has been presented requiring Sri Lankan Government to purchase smart boards with specifications identical to the smart boards which were proposed to be distributed by the Chinese Government.
In line with the Cabinet decision of May 14, 2024, the procurement for the 1,000 smart boards began in July 2024. However, at the time of purchase, the project proposed by the Chinese Government was still at the discussion stage, and no official agreement had been reached regarding the technical specifications of the smart boards.
However, the procurement was carried out through the Sri Lanka State Trading (General) Corporation without a competitive bidding process, relying on price quotations obtained from a single supplier based on unclear sources that were not officially verified by the Chinese government. The Sri Lanka Telecommunications Regulatory Commission incurred the full cost of LKR 1.7 billion, with an additional LKR 430 million allocated for services and installation.
The aforementioned procurement appears to have been conducted at an unusually accelerated pace when compared to the standard procedure typically followed for high-value procurements. Specifically, price quotations were requested on July 5, 2024, opened on July 15, 2024, and by July 16, 2024, the Technical Evaluation Committee had completed and submitted the report. Subsequently, the report was reviewed by the Standing Procurement Committee appointed by the Cabinet on July 17 and 18, 2024, with recommendations being provided on the same day. These recommendations were then submitted to the Cabinet on July 23, 2024, and approval was granted on July 30, 2024. Followed by this, the purchase requisition was issued to the supplier on August 5, 2024. Accordingly, the entire procurement process was completed within a span of one month.
As part of this procurement, a Letter of Credit was opened to facilitate the payment of USD 3,135,392.50 for 1,000 smart boards to Intelligent Express Limited Hong Kong, which has been identified as a representative of Huawei. While the relevant Cabinet paper indicated Huawei as the designated manufacturer supplying the smart boards under the Chinese funding project, the Chinese government has not yet confirmed the selection of such a supplier for this project.
According to aforementioned purchase requisition, the purchased smart boards and related equipment were delivered to the Ministry of Education in October 2024 and are currently stored at Pattala Gedara Teacher’s Training College. Although the procurement of the aforementioned Smart boards by the Sri Lankan Government has been finalized, the relevant project, which was intended to be implemented under the funding of Chinese government, has not yet commenced and a final agreement regarding its implementation has not been reached.
Prior to reaching a final agreement on the network integration facilities and centralized system proposed by the Chinese government, the procurement of these smart boards has resulted in the inability to utilize the equipment for the intended purpose. It is expected that the Chinese aid project is at the discussion stage, and the implementation may extend until the end of this year. Further, no official decision has been made regarding the selection of a supplier for the project.
Given this situation, if the 1,000 smart boards and other equipment currently stored in warehouses are to be distributed to schools, school principals must be provided with clear instructions on their proper use. However, due to the delay in implementing the project under the funding of the Chinese government, specific guidelines on the installation and utilization of the equipment cannot yet be issued.
Since network integration cannot be carried out at this stage, these smart boards can only be used as standalone classroom units. As a result, the objectives of the project will not be met, and the investment of LKR 1.7 billion made might be considered to be underutilized.
A formal investigation has been initiated to determine whether financial and procedural irregularities have occurred in this procurement. Additionally, discussions are currently continued with the Chinese government, and efforts are being made to secure the proposed facilities from China at the earliest convenience.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
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