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The great man who turned the Kalutara bodhiya into a sacred place

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In commemoration of Sir Cyril de Zoysa on his 124th birthday

“My father was a Notary. He travelled almost daily from his home in Velitota to his office in Ambalangoda in a bullock cart that he hired for the purpose. My father never complained about having to hire his transport. But this was causing me grave concern. By this time, I had received my secondary education at Royal College, Colombo, and was conducting a series of extra classes for the children of affluent parents, in the vicinity. At this time such extra classes were not readily available. Drawing on my knowledge, my students had their own knowledge enhanced. It was in order to earn the money to buy my father a bullock and a brand new cart that I started on this programme of work. In a matter of about seven or eight months, I was able to find the money for this purpose.

At that time, I had to spend only three hundred rupees to buy a bullock and a brand new cart to facilitate my father’s travel. My father, who had so far travelled to his office in carts belonging to other people, was amazed at my gesture and with tears of joy in his eyes bestowed his blessings upon me. This in turn gave me a sense of joy that I had never before experienced. Today I think that in later life, all I touched turned to gold, because of the blessings I so received from my father…”

This was a declaration made in the year 1964. This was something addressed to me by none other than Sir Cyril de Zoysa himself, who at that time had earned accolades as a successful businessman and a Sinhala Buddhist leader of the land. I was then a very young monk whom Sir Cyril had very especially begun to associate and it was for my edification that he said this. He was at the time a chief dayakaya of the Kande Viharaya, in Alutgama where I had entered the folds of Buddhist monkhood when I was very small. It was in appreciation of the industriousness I displayed, even at that time, in carrying out any work entrusted to me and my pleasant manner too that he paid special attention to me. This is why he found me indispensable during the conduct of religious activities in the Vihara as well as when he wished to have Seth Kavi and Seth Pirith (recitation of blessings upon him) chanted. It was his pleasure to send his driver to fetch me from the Kande Viharaya or from my abode at Avondale Road in Maradana where I latterly took up residence. In response all religious activities were performed by me in the prescribed manner.

I clearly observed how everything Sir Cyril did, whether it be in the social or the religious sphere, was done in the prescribed, methodical and formal manner and I noticed that he was greatly pleased that I emulated him. For this very reason my great, god-like preceptor the Venerable Potuvila Sri Saranatissa Nayaka Thera, Chief Incumbent of the Alutgama Kande Viharaya fully approved of my being engaged in the religious activities of Sir Cyril. Whenever Sir Cyril felt the need for my services, he was in the habit of summoning his driver and saying, ‘Go Piyadasa, Go fetch Podi Hamuduruwo, (the Junior Monk)’, thus sending the car for me. He was fully confident that the Podi Hamuduruwo would fulfill his religious needs in the proper manner.

As such, I succeeded in performing Buddha Pooja, chanting Seth Kavi and attending to other minor religious needs, to his utmost satisfaction. As there was such a fund of trust between the two of us he even related to me, from time to time, the main and earliest events that affected his life, just as though I were among his nearest and dearest.

He related to me the story of the efforts he made in his adolescent days to find the means to buy the gift of a bullock and a brand new cart for his father. He wished to have this act stand out as an example to others as an act of gratitude and the discharge of a duty by a youth towards his parents. In this day and age when one often hears of how some children do not care for their fathers who provided them with an education from their young days and set them up in the higher echelons of society, Sir Cyril’s conduct stands out in contrast as the most valuable offering of his lifetime. Thus, by the power of the blessings of his father, as it were, he while ascending a flight of social steps to the top in society as a businessman, was also going up the political ladder first as the Chairman of an Urban Council and later as the President of the Senate.

He often repeated that the main reason for his progress, and his systematic life style which led to such progress, were the example his father set and the blessings he extended to him as his son; and this too he said was by way of setting an example to others.

Even some Heads of State respected Sir Cyril’s thoughts and many were the instances when they obtained his counsel and even assistance from him.

He was motivated into sharing with me interesting information about his social life and about certain personal triumphs he achieved. This was when his mind was free from the stress of business concerns and from such other pressures. What I realized later on was that he was personally enjoying relaxation by talking about such matters with a person whom he knew was most devoted to him. Although I was at that time a young novice I now feel that the extent of the knowledge I had of the Buddha Dhamma, even at that young age, together with my ability to chant stanzas and devotional songs impressed him so much that our relationship was one such as between a grandson and a grandfather where the elder of the two relieved his mind of both joys and sorrows and achieved some mental peace. Today when I reminisce about what he discussed with me, it seems to me that talking to a little monk like me suited him better than conducting discussions with a Maha Thera well versed in the Dhamma, highly disciplined by Vinaya rules and highly purified in mind.

When a man of his stature, who was sometimes worn out by continuously spending about 20 out of the 24 hours, clearing a mountain of work on behalf of society, was afflicted with even a minor ailment I blessed him and offered Buddha Pooja, and recited Seth Kavi with or without his knowledge. I later learnt that in my absence he was in the habit of telling his friends and well-wishers that all what Podi Hamuduruvo (the little monk) does conduce towards both my physical and my mental health. In order to bring about some relief in the case of minor ailments, I chanted Seth Kavi before the statue of God Vishnu at the Kande Vihara, conducted Bodhi Pooja before the Bo Tree at Bellanwila and performed various rituals at the Jayasekhara-aramaya at Kuppiyawatta. It was observed that these did have some good effects on his health.

He was so pleased with his association with me that occasionally he made me accompany him to participate in certain social events or travel long distances with him to faraway shrines. This he did as though he was accompanied by a child of a relative. During such travels I was able to understand and appreciate his personal qualities as well as the examples he set before society. On some days when he went to the Galle Face Green to take his exercises, he carried a small chair in the car, set it upon the green, made me sit upon it and then ventured out with the others on long walks by way of physical exercise.

Although in appearance he looked like the proverbial “great, black, Sinhalese” he was a majestic personality with a heart of gold. Only one who personally associated him closely would realise this. I am one of those who had the opportunity to savour of such sterling qualities owing to my long and close association with him.

He was one who was able to set up by dint of hard work, efficiency, honesty and commitment a vast business empire within which he generated employment for thousands of people. As if in response, day by day he was blessed with success in generating vast wealth. He was a living example to his employees, who in turn were required to serve, like he himself did, with efficiency and honesty. By his own example he illustrated that it was a duty of the owner of a business enterprise to teach his employees, more by example than by precept, as to how they should serve the workplace from where they draw their bread and butter. His friends as well as his foes in both the political and the business arenas equally well acknowledged this, also drawing upon him as an example.

In recognition of his services to country, nation and society, the British Government conferred a knighthood upon him. Although our own society too heaped upon him various types of honours, his view was that all these are empty gestures; that no honours are indicated where one serves the people genuinely, in accordance with one’s own conscience.

Sir Cyril expanded the services of the Young Men’s Buddhist Association (YMBA) founded by Sir DB Jayatilaka, of which the office is located in Borella. As the new Chairman of the YMBA he made it a place held in the highest esteem by all of Sri Lanka. He built its auditorium and gifted it to the Association in memory of both his mother and his father. Even today the building remains an income-generating asset to the Association. The services it provides to the people can barely be stated adequately in words

Although he was involved in the proverbial ‘thousand and one’ activities, yet on his visits to the South never did he fail to step out by the monuments set up at the spot where the ashes of his parents are interred, spare a moment in reflection with palms folded and pay homage to their memory.

 

It is well known that the great Bodhiya in Kalutara turned into a place held sacred by people in all of Sri Lanka, because of the services rendered by Sir Cyril. In the beginning of the era when the premises of the Kalutara Bodhiya belonged to the Residency, Buddhists who wended their way in for worship were chased away by the white Government Agent of the time. He even tried to build a tall structure to ward them off the premises. Our ‘Big Black Sinhalaya’ rose against this White Government Agent.

Sir Cyril commenced a transport business by releasing a single bus named “Swarnapali” on to the roads and soon turned this into a large Bus Company. He adopted the simple strategy of having the conductor collect coins from the passengers who willingly subscribed to have them cast into the tills placed to make collections to support the Kalutara Bodhi. This strategy was crowned with success. Soon after he enlarged the Transport Service and inaugurated the ‘South Western Bus Company’. Along with this he began the production of spareparts for motor vehicles, retreading tyres and other such. As a result, thousands of people in our land found employment which ensured them a daily livelihood.

Later on, in 1956, when the Bandaranaike Government came into power and nationalized transport services, some bus owners who were all opposed to this action, resorted to various insidious means to sabotage the nationalization programme. But Sir Cyril evaluated this decision positively. He provided a ‘spare parts kit’ for each of his 200 or so buses, topped up each bus with diesel and handed over his fleet to the Government. Even Prime Minister Bandaranaike was astounded by this action.

One of his qualities was to ensure that supplementary allocations would be available to keep sustained, without intervening breakdowns, any programme of work he initiated, be it in the social sphere or in relation to the Sasana.

When Sir Cyril invited the Engineering maestro Dr. ANS Kulasinghe to build a Chaitya in the Bodhi premises, the latter was pleased beyond measure and resolved to construct one the likes of which has never before been seen in Sri Lanka. It was built upon the very spot on which the Residency of the white Government Agent was constructed during the British period. When a request was made to transfer that part of the premises to the Kalutara Bodhi Trust, the Government Agent of the time did not comply.

When Mr. Leel Gunasekera, the litterateur, was the Government Agent, Sir Cyril made this request of him, and it was soon granted. Sir Cyril treated this as a case of the fruition of his past Karma (actions). Mr. Leel Gunasekera too, had occasion to tell us, on a later occasion, that through this decision he too performed an act of great merit.

Mr. Kulasinghe, the Engineer, built upon the very spot on which the Residency of the Government Agent had been constructed, a Chaitya, as stated before, “the likes of which has never before been seen in Sri Lanka”. Pilgrims could walk right into the middle of the Chaitya and engage in worship. Sir Cyril too was extremely pleased that he was at the helm of the programme of building such a wonderful Chaitya.

He was in the habit of telling me often, “Podi Hamuduruwane, I want to live until the work of this Chaitya is complete.”

One day, during this time, Sir Cyril took me to his huge factories which comprised a vast network of production points, which by that time had become foreign exchange generating units as well. It was only later on that I realized that he did so to prove a point to me.

“Podi Hamuduruwane”, he started. “There was a time when the Government Agent, Kalutara, a white man, placed obstacles in the way of Buddhists who came to worship the Bodhiya and prevented them from entering the premises. I stood up against him. Now you see, there are white men who know their jobs working under me in my factories.

Engineer, Dr. Kulasinghe, used the very spot upon which stood the Residency occupied by the Government Agent, to build a massive Chaitya of a very special type. This is but a travesty of destiny. In turn Dr. Kulasinghe believed that his plan for the Chaitya is but a tribute to his own creativity.

In his last days what Sir Cyril declared to a newspaper journalist whom he met was that he has performed a vast volume of work and services and the following is what he thinks:

“I am now a free man. However much wealth a person has it is of no use. They are all empty stuff. I was born without any wealth. I shall die too without any wealth. My joy, my relief, my strength are the Buddha Dhamma. As long as I live I shall receive the protection of the gods.”

One morning, in the evening of his life, he took me to his home in the Apartment Complex at Park Street, Colombo. I felt that he was in an unusual mood. As he reached home, he summoned his servant and said, “Today we have to provide the forenoon meal to this monk. So please add an extra cup of rice to the pot.” Then he had a small chair placed in the patch of garden within the quadrangular area in the middle of the house and made me sit there. He sat upon the step. “Podi Hamuduruwane” he continued. “Now, please would you chant the Karaneeya Metta Sutra and the Ratana Sutra. Thereafter please explain to me the meaning of each of them”. While I was chanting, it is with his hands folded together and placed on his forehead that he gave ear. I still remember how Mr. VT de Zoysa, his younger brother together with his nephew, Shelley Wickremasinghe too, gave ear to the chant and to my subsequent explanation of their meanings.

One day, I arrived at his home in Park Street when, as was his practice, he sent his car and driver to fetch me. He welcomed me and ushered me into the house. I then saw two youngsters leave the house. “Do you know the two who just left the house?” he queried. “They are my younger brother’s sons: Ajita de Zoysa and Tilak de Zoysa. He thus introduced them to me by name.

After the demise of Sir Cyril de Zoysa, I learnt and I saw these two youngsters playing a leadership role at various religious and other ceremonies.

Today Deshamanya Ajita de Zoysa serves as the Chairman of the Kalutara Bodhi Trust and Deshabandu Tilak de Zoysa as its Secretary. This is as if in very special honour of Sir Cyril, their esteemed paternal Uncle and man of the era, who in his own time served the interests of the nation and religion – the Sasana.

It was only the other day that Deshamanya Ajita de Zoysa who holds the Chair of the Amarapura Nikaya-arakshaka Sabha donated Rupees Sixty-Five Million and built a headquarters for the Amarapura Sanga Sabha in Wellawatte. This offering to the Sasana too may be cited as another instance of following upon the footsteps of an exemplary Uncle.

With the passage of time, Sir Cyril fell seriously ill and was lying at the MaCarthy Private Hospital when I visited him on many a day, morning and evening, to chant seth pirith wishing him recovery and prime health. This I did out of a sense of duty, as well, towards him. A few days later, on 2nd January 1978, he breathed his last.

This great national leader who made a name for himself even beyond the shores of Sri Lanka as the legendary Anepidu-sitana in Buddhist history passed away after repaying the debt he owed to the nation by being born into it and conversely making the nation indebted, as it were, to him. Soon it will be the 42nd Anniversary of his demise and the 124th of his birth.

For many, Nirvana is far far away. But for Sir Cyril, owing to his many acts of merit and charity, it is but a mere arm’s length away. It is our prime duty to wish him the peace of Nirvana very soon in the round of births and deaths.

 

Venerable Pandita Arama Sri Dhammatilaka Nayaka Thera M.A.

Justice of the Peace Reg. No.99/08/WP AI 10/078

Sanghanayaka of the District of Colombo,

Chairman/ Western Region- Kolonnawa Sasana-arakshaka Mandalaya

Paaramita Sri Maha Bodhimalu Vihara, Gothatuwa

011 253 4005, 011 268 5054



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Citizenship, Devolution, Land and Language: The Vicarious Legacies of SJV Chelvanayakam

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From left GG Ponnambalam, SJV Chelvanayakam and M. Tiruchelvam

SJV Chelvanayakam, the founder leader of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Kadchi, aka Ceylon Tamil Federal Party, passed away 49 years ago on 26 April 1977. There were events in Sri Lanka and other parts of the world where Tamils live, to commemorate his memory and his contributions to Tamil society and politics. His legacy is most remembered for his espousal of the cause of federalism and his commitment to pursuing it solely through non-violent politics. Chelvanayakam’s political life spanned a full 30 years from his first election as MP for Kankesanthurai in 1947 until his death in 1977.

Under the rubric of federalism, Chelvanayakam formulated what he called the four basic demands of the Tamil speaking people, a political appellation he coined to encompass – the Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Muslims and the hill country Tamils (Malaiyaka Tamils). The four demands included the restoration of the citizenship rights of the hill country Tamils; cessation of state sponsored land colonisation in the North and East; parity of status for the Sinhala and Tamil languages; and a system of regional autonomy to devolve power to the northern and eastern provinces.

High-minded Politics

Although the four basic demands that Chelvanayakam articulated were not directly delivered upon during his lifetime, they became part of the country’s political discourse and dynamic to such an extent that they had to be dealt with, one way or another, even after his death. So, we can call these posthumous developments as Chelvanayakam’s vicarious legacies. There is more to his legacy. He belonged to a category of Sri Lankans, Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims, who took to politics, public life, public service, and even private business with a measure of high-mindedness that was almost temperamental and not at all contrived. Chelvanayakam personified high-minded politics. But he was not the only one. There were quite a few others in the 20th century. There have not been many since.

Born on 31 March 1898, Chelvanayakam was 49 years old when he entered parliament. He was not an upstart school dropout dashing into politics or coming straight out of the university, or even a hereditary claimant, but a self-made man, an accomplished lawyer, a King’s Counsel, later Queen’s Counsel, and was widely regarded as one of the finest civil lawyers of his generation. He was a serious man who took to politics seriously. Howard Wriggins, in his classic 1960 book, “Ceylon: Dilemmas of a New Nation”, called Chelvanayakam “the earnest Christian lawyer.”

Chelvanayakam’s professional standing, calm demeanour, his personal qualities of sincerity and honesty, and his friendships with men of the calibre of Sir Edward Jayatilleke KC (Chief Justice, 1950-52), H.V. Perera QC, P. Navaratnarajah, QC, and K.C. Thangarajah, were integral to his politics. The four of them were also mutual friends of Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike and they played a part in the celebrated consociational achievement in 1957, called the B-C Pact.

Chelvanayakam effortlessly combined elite consociationalism with grass roots politics and mass movements. He led the Federal Party both as a democratic organization and an open movement. Chelvanayakam and the Federal Party used parliament as their forum to present their case, the courts to fight for their rights, and took to organizing non-violent protests, political pilgrimages and satyagraha campaigns. He was imprisoned in Batticaloa, detained in Panagoda, and was placed under house arrest several times. His Alfred House Gardens neighbours in Colombo used to wonder why the government and the police were after him, of all people, and why wouldn’t they do something about his four boisterous, but studious, sons!

He was a rare politician who filed his own election petition when he was defeated in the 1952 election, his first as the leader of the Federal Party, and was rewarded with punitive damages by an exacting judge. He had to borrow money from Sir Edward Jayatilleke to pay damages. The common practice for losing candidates was to file vexatious petitions in the name of one of their supporters with no asset to pay legal costs. Chelvanayakam was too much of a principled man for that. As a matter of a different principle, the two old Left parties never challenged election losses in court, but Dr. Colvin R de Silva singled out Chelvanayakam’s uniqueness for praise in parliament, in the course of a debate on amendments to the country’s election laws in 1968.

Disenfranchisement & Disintegration

Although he became an MP in 1947, Chelvanayakam had been associated with GG Ponnambalam and the Tamil Congress Party for a number of years. GG was the flamboyant frontliner, SJV the quiet mainstay behind. Tamil politics at that time was all about representation. In fact, all politics in Sri Lanka has been all about representation all the time. It started when British colonial rulers began nominating local (Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim) representatives to quasi legislative bodies, and it became a contentious political matter after the introduction of universal franchise in 1931.

Communal representation was conveniently made to look ugly by those who themselves were politically communal. Indeed, under colonial rule, if not later too, Sri Lankans were a schizophrenic society where most Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims were socially friendly, but politically communal. The underlying premise to the fight over representation was that British colonialists were not leaving in a hurry and they were there to stay and rule for a long time. Hence the jostling for positions under a foreign master. It was in this context that Ponnambalam made his celebrated 50-50 pitch for balanced representation between the Sinhalese, on the one hand, and all the others – Tamils, Muslims, Indian Tamils – combined on the other. It was a perfectly rational proposition, but it was also perfectly poor politics.

But independence came far sooner than expected. The Soulbury Constitution was set up not for a continuing colonial state, but as the constitution for an independent new Ceylon. So, the argument for balanced representation became irrelevant in the new circumstances. The new Soulbury Constitution was enacted in 1945, general elections were held in 1947, a new parliament was elected, and Ceylon became independent in 1948. SJV Chelvanayakam was among the seven Tamil Congress MPs elected to the first parliament led by GG Ponnambalam.

The Tamil Congress campaigned in the 1947 election against accepting the Soulbury Constitution and for a vaguely formulated mandate “to cooperate with any progressive Sinhalese party which would grant the Tamil their due rights.” But what these rights are was not specified. In a Feb. 5, 1946 speech in Jaffna, Ponnambalam specifically proposed “responsive cooperation between the communities” – not parties – and advocated “a social welfare policy” to benefit not only the poor masses of Tamils but also the large masses of the Sinhalese.

So, when Ponnambalam and four of the seven Tamil Congress MPs decided to join the government of DS Senanayake with Ponnambalam accepting the portfolio of the Minister of Industries, Industrial Research and Fisheries, they were opposed by Chelvanayakam and two other Tamil Congress MPs. The immediate context for this split was the Citizenship question that arose soon after independence when DS Senanayake’s UNP government introduced the Ceylon Citizenship Bill in parliament. The purpose and effect of the bill was to deprive the estate Tamils of Indian origin (then numbering about 780,000) of their citizenship. Previously the government had got parliament to enact the Elections Act to stipulate that only citizens can vote in national elections. In one stroke, the whole working population of the plantations was disenfranchised.

GG Ponnambalam and all seven Tamil Congress MPs voted against the two bills. Joining them in opposition were the six MPs from the Ceylon Indian Congress representing the Malaiyaka Tamils and 18 Sinhalese MPs from the Left Parties. The Citizenship Bill was passed in Parliament on 20 August 1948. Ponnambalam called it a dark day for Ceylon and accused Senanayake of racism. But less than a month later, on September 3, 1948, he joined the Senanayake cabinet as a prominent minister and the government’s principal defender in parliamentary debates. Dr. NM Perera once called Ponnambalam “the devil’s advocate from Jaffna.”

Chelvanayakam remained in the opposition with two of his Congress colleagues. A little over an year later, on December 18, 1949, Chelvanayakam founded the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi, Federal Party in English. Not long after, joining Chelvanayakam in the opposition was SWRD Bandaranaike, who broke away from the UNP government over succession differences and went on to form another new political party, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. As was his wont as a Marxist to see trends and patterns in politics, Hector Abhayavardhana saw the breakaways of Chelvanayakam and Bandaranaike, as well as the emergence of Thondaman as the leader of the disenfranchised hill country Tamils, as symptoms of a disintegrating society as it was transitioning from colonial rule to independence.

Abhayavardhana saw the Citizenship Act as the political trigger of this disintegration in the course of which “what was set up for the purpose of a future nation ended in caricature as a Sinhalese state.” Chelvanayakam may have agreed with this assessment even though he was located at the right end of the ideological continuum. “Ideologically, SJV is to the right of JR,” was part of political gossip in the old days. He saw “seeds of communism” in Philip Gunawardena’s Paddy Lands Act. For all their differences, Chelvanayakam and Ponnambalam were united in one respect – as unrepentant opponents of Marxism.

The Four Demands

Chelvanayakam had his work cut out as the leader of a new political party and pitting himself against a formidable political foe like Ponnambalam with all the ministerial resources at his disposal. Chelvanayakam may not have quite seen it that way. Rather, he saw his role as a matter of moral duty to fill the vacuum created by what he believed to be Ponnambalam’s betrayal, and to provide new leadership to a people who were at the crossroads of uncertainty after the unexpectedly early arrival of independence.

He set about his work by expanding his political constituency to include not only the island’s indigenous Tamils, but also the Muslims and the Tamil plantation workers from South India – as the island’s Tamil speaking people. It was he who vigorously introduced the disenfranchised Indian Tamils as hill country Tamils. In the aftermath of the Citizenship Act and disenfranchisement, restoring their citizenship rights became an obvious first demand for the new Party.

Having learnt the lesson from Ponnambalam’s failed 50-50 demand, Chelvanayakam territorialized the representation question by identifying the northern and eastern provinces as “traditional Tamil homelands,” and adding a measure regional autonomy to make up for the shortfall in representation at the national level in Colombo. To territorialization and autonomy, he added the cessation of state sponsored land colonization especially in the eastern province. Chelvanayakam and the Federal Party painstakingly explained that they were by no means opposed to Sinhalese voluntarily living in Tamil areas, either as a matter of choice, pursuing business or as government and private sector employees, but the nuancing was quite easily lost in the political shouting match.

The fourth demand, after citizenship, regional autonomy, and land, was about language. Language was not an issue when Chelvanayakam started the Federal Party. But he pessimistically predicted that sooner or later the then prevailing consensus, based on a State Council resolution, over equality between the two languages would be broken. He was proved right, sooner than later, and language became the explosive question in the 1956 election. As it turned out, the UNP government was thrown out, SWRD Bandaranaike led a coalition of parties to victory and government in the south, while SJV Chelvanayakam won a majority of the seats in the North and East, including two Muslims from Kalmunai and Pottuvil.

After the passage of the Sinhala Only Act on June 5, 1956, the Federal Party launched a political pilgrimage and mobilized a convention that was held in Trincomalee in the month of August. The four basic demands were concretized at the convention, viz., citizenship restoration for the hill country Tamils, parity of status for the Sinhala and Tamil languages, the cessation of state sponsored land colonization, and a system of regional autonomy in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

The four demands became the basis for the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam agreement – the B-C Pact of 1957, and again the agreement between SJV Chelvanayakam and Dudley Senanayake in 1965. The former was abrogated by Prime Minister Bandaranaike under political duress but was not abandoned by him. The latter has been implemented in fits and starts.

The two agreements which should have been constitutionally enshrined, were severely ignored in the making of the 1972 Constitution and the 1978 Constitution – with the latter learning nothing and forgetting everything that its predecessor had inadvertently precipitated. The political precipitation was the rise of Tamil separatism and its companion, Tamil political violence. Ironically, Tamil separatism and violence created the incentive to resolve what Chelvanayakam had formulated and non-violently pursued as the four basic demands of the Tamils.

After his death in 1977, the citizenship question has finally been resolved. The 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution that was enacted in 1987 resolved the language question both in law and to an appreciable measure in practice. The same amendment also brought about the system of provincial councils, substantially fulfilling the regional autonomy demand of SJV Chelvanayakam. The land question, however, has taken a different turn with state sponsored land colonisation in the east giving way to government security forces sequestering private residential properties of Tamil families in the north, especially in the Jaffna Peninsula.

Further, the future of the Provincial Council system has become uncertain with the extended postponement of provincial elections by four Presidents and their governments, including the current incumbents. The provinces are now being administered by the President through handpicked governors without the elected provincial councils as mandated by the constitution. Imagine a Sri Lanka where there is only an Executive President and no parliament – not even a nameboard one. “What horror!”, you would say. But that is the microcosmic reality today in the country’s nine provinces.

by Rajan Philips

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Application of AI in Logistics in Sri Lanka can improve efficiency, reduce cost and enhance decision making

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KIVA robots in Amazon Warehouses

“AI increases profits while reducing un ethical intervention which is proven by Successful Global Business Models”

Artificial Intelligence(AI) is still only a buzz word in the Sri Lankan society, though many wanted to have an awareness of the concept the resources are scares, even still the IT industry has not formulated any awareness programs or a Degree yet to cope with the development. But world education warns that there want be any IT based jobs in future without learning the AI. AI has multiple use in any discipline and it has the ability to increase the efficiency of the work intern cut down the product or the service cost. Below description is how the application of AI can smoother the function of Logistic or the Supply Chain Management.

AI Integrating Procedure for Distribution Systems

Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in logistics can greatly improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance decision-making in simple enhance the profit margins. Below is a structured overview of how AI can be used in logistics, including key applications, tools, and real-world examples. Machine Learning(ML) is the foundation to AI but subsequently develops the capability of absorbing the information from the cloud (IT environment) and produce future behavior or trends by analyzing the fed data to the computers on a certain period of time. In some occasions vendors offer unbelievable discounts by using ML or AI, because it clearly understands the market behavior, human behavior, expiration and many other variables that gives the profits or losses to the product or the service.

Key Areas Where AI is Used in Logistics;

· Demand Forecasting

· Route Optimization

· Warehouse Automation

· Predictive Maintenance

· Inventory Management

· Supply chain Management

· Customer Service with Chat bots

· Fraud Detection and Risk Management

1. Demand Forecasting

AI can analyze historical data, market trends, and external factors (like weather or news) to:

· Predict product demand more accurately

· Optimize inventory levels

· Reduce stockouts or overstocking

Tools: Machine learning models (e.g., time series forecasting) and IT platforms/software like Amazon Forecast, Prophet by Meta. These are the software applications that helps to understand the future trends.

Amazon Forecasting software

Traditional forecasting methods typically rely on statistical modeling, but software like “Chronos” that treats time series data (data collected during a certain period of time) as a language to be modeled and uses a pre-trained FM (forecast Models) to generate forecasts, which similar to how “Large Language Models” (LLMs) generate texts helps you achieve accurate predictions faster, significantly reducing development time compared to traditional methods.

Prophet by Meta

Prophet is a very efficient and accurate procedure for forecasting time series data based on an additive model where non-linear trends are fit with yearly, weekly, and daily seasonality, plus holiday effects. It works best with time series that have strong seasonal effects and several seasons of historical data. This software adds many social, cultural and geographical variables other than internal information to decision making.

2. Route Optimization

AI-powered systems can calculate the most efficient delivery routes in real-time using:

· Traffic data

· Weather conditions

· Delivery time windows

· Vehicle capacity and fuel usage

Example: UPS (one of the largest Logistic companies in the world) uses its ORION system (AI-based) to save millions of gallons of fuel per year.

IT Tools: Google OR-Tools, Route4Me, Mapbox with ML integration.

IBM Maximo is a multi-facet coordinator

The “Route4Me” IT platform automates and integrates mission-critical last mile workflows, empowering route planners, dispatchers, drivers, and managers to take the business to the next level. Distribution networks, passenger transportation networks can achieve much cost reduction by using above platforms. This is a good platform for the Sri Lanka passenger industry to reduce the overheads for the population. In Sri Lanka “Pick me” and “Uber” uses similar platforms in their transportation industry. Whole three wheeler industry can be regulating with this kind of software and transfer benefits to the passengers.

3. Warehouse Automation

AI enables:

· Robotics for picking, packing, and sorting

· Vision systems for scanning and inventory management

· Autonomous forklifts and drones for internal transport

Example: Amazon’s use of “Kiva robots” in fulfillment(distribution) centers.

Kiva Robots in Warehouses

Traditionally, goods are moved around a distribution center using a conveyor system  or by human-operated machines (such as forklifts). In Kiva’s approach, items are stored in portable storage units. When an order is entered into the Kiva database system, the software locates the closest automated guided vehicle to the item and directs it to retrieve it. The mobile robots navigate around the warehouse by following a series of computerized bar-code stickers on the floor. Each drive unit has a sensor that prevents it from colliding with others. When the drive unit reaches the target location, it slides underneath the pod(Pallet) and lifts it off the ground through a corkscrew action. The robot then carries the pod to the specified human operator to pick up the items or subsequently hand over to the “drone” to deliver to the customer. Human intervention is minimal and accordingly overheads are reduced, Sri Lanka needs to achieve this kind of operational level in order to par with the international markets.

4. Predictive Maintenance

Traditionally Sri Lankans are week in maintenance, they basically wait until the machine stops in the other way bureaucratic too are much restrict on the maintenance and the procurement procedure. Applying this kind of maintenance software will eradicate all of these lethargies and the bureaucratic blocks. Subsequently continuing the smooth operations and productions.

AI monitors equipment (vehicles, conveyor belts, etc.) to:

· Predict when they will fail

· Schedule maintenance proactively

· Reduce downtime and repair costs

Tools: IoT(internet of things as cameras, sensors, GPS etc.) sensors + ML models (e.g., anomaly detection), IT platforms like IBM Maximo.

IBM Maximo is a multi-facet coordinator

“From equipment to factories, from fleets to infrastructure, Maximo Application Suite empowers users across verticals to coordinate maintenance and management for a broad range of asset classes”.

5. Supply Chain Visibility

AI can analyze data across the supply chain to:

· Track shipments in real-time

· Identify delays or bottlenecks

· Provide predictive ETAs

📦 Example: DHL (Logistic Company) uses AI to forecast transit delays and offer dynamic ETA updates.

This is an ideal tool for cargo management, ideal for sea ports and the air ports in Sri Lanka. This is one of the grave gray areas in the port system, though the port system is lacking the required information due to that the client has to pay the demurrages and warehouse cost for the ports. Also, cut down unnecessary delays and reduce bribes and corruption at all levels.

6. Inventory Management

AI helps optimize:

· Stock levels across multiple warehouses

· Replenishment timing

· Safety stock calculation

Tools: ERP (Entrepreneur Resource Planning) systems with embedded AI (e.g., SAP, Oracle), custom ML models.

These systems drastically reduce the human intervention and speedup the Supply management process.

7. Customer Service & Chatbots

AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can:

· Handle customer queries 24/7

· Track orders

· Provide personalized delivery updates

Tools: Dialogflow, Microsoft Bot Framework, ChatGPT API

Dialogflow

“Dialogflow” is a natural language understanding IT platform that makes it easy to design and integrate a conversational user interface into the mobile app, web application, device, bot, interactive voice response system, and so on. Using Dialogflow, establishments can provide new and engaging ways for users to interact with the product. Dialogflow can analyze multiple types of input from the customers, including text or audio inputs (like from a phone or voice recording). It can also respond to the customers in a couple of ways, either through text or with synthetic speech.

AI Conversational Chatbots Platform

Above IT platforms control the human intervention and reduce the cost of employees. Chatbots are basically efficient than the humans due to the high memory power for the standard customer inquiries. Application to Government sector will reduce the burden for the general public.

8. Fraud Detection & Risk Management

AI detects unusual patterns in:

· Orders

· Transactions

· Supplier behavior

Helps prevent:

· Cargo theft

· Counterfeit goods

· Financial fraud

*”KPMG Clara” for Supply Chain Risk Management

“KPMG Clara” is an AI-powered IT platform offering supply chain analytics, risk detection, and compliance management.

Key Features:

· AI-driven risk modeling

· ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and compliance monitoring

· Predictive analytics for disruptions

· Supplier risk scoring

“Geo Analysis” (AI based) IT platform in Supply Chain Access Control

Above IT platform Monitor access patterns across cross-border freight hubs, regional warehouses, and remote carrier logins. “Geo analysis” for supply chain authentication identifies impossible travel, geo-inconsistencies, and spoofed IPs to reduce credential abuse and unauthorized entry into logistics systems. This important IT platform can reduce corruption and many unethical practices, ideal tool for the Sri Lankan Government sector that can curb the mal practices.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a remarkable IT tool which can apply in almost all the sectors that can reap the Efficiency and Accuracy. In above paragraphs I have described the application in different stages of the Logistic or the Supply Chain Management. Application of AI tools can be done on stages as initially find the specific pain points pertaining to the supply chain and then, prepare data from the GPS, inventory systems, sales forecasts and supplier records. Subsequently can understand the specific AI platforms and ML models to suit the SCM operation. Further, can apply in a small scale as a pilot project and analyze impact as cost savings or efficiency gains. Once understand the model can roll out to other areas of operations in the establishment.

Final outcome will be “15% reduction in fuel cost, 20% faster deliveries, Increased customer satisfaction”

There may be many negative lobbies since this is new to the many sectors in the country and further ability to proof the corruption but proper education and understanding the world AI based business models, establishments can reach the required goal.

(Writer can be reached at, chandana_w@yahoo.com)

by Lt Col. Chandana Weerakoon.
Chartered Logistician

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Motherhood is not ‘giving up’

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Since having my baby, I have been regularly met with the question, “Are you back at work?”

“No,”

I reply. “I am doing my PhD from home.”

Several emotions arise. I feel guilty that I am not back at work, that somehow I should be. I also feel relieved that I can justify my time at home by offering up the PhD as a worthy endeavour. Sometimes, the person responds in surprise, “Oh, so no work?” Other times, they are approving, “How lucky for you and your baby.” Occasionally, there is the advice, “Don’t give up work.”

At the back of my mind are certain thoughts. “Am I not ‘working’? Isn’t the work of motherhood also considered ‘work’? If it isn’t, shouldn’t it be?”

Although the questions, comments, and advice about returning to work are made innocently enough, mostly benevolently, they have prompted me to reflect on the idea of work and motherhood, and how mothers and society view both.

Motherhood, I believe, is a full-time, highly skilled, unpaid job that never ends. All mothers work at least two jobs. They do the work of mothering, and also work in either a paid or unpaid additional role. Many women will do even more. They mother, care for their elderly parents, work a paid job, voluntarily contribute to community building, and try to fit in creative pursuits, hobbies, or ‘self-care’ when they can.

Motherhood requires many skills. You are, effectively, the CEO of your family and home (with hopefully a supportive co-CEO by your side). There is the work of child-rearing, which requires patience, energy, creativity, presence, flexibility, courage, fortitude, knowledge, and the ability to research, learn, and unlearn. You are raising the future. Then there is the work of home and family life, which requires skills in leadership, organisation, prioritisation, delegation, negotiation, financial management, crisis management, and conflict resolution. There is also the internal work of being self-aware, forgiving yourself and others, practicing compassion, and accepting the inherent imperfections of ‘doing it all’.

This work of motherhood is now recognised as ‘unpaid caregiving and domestic work’ and ‘invisible labour’ by international organisations such as the United Nations. It includes physical labour, direct care labour, mental or cognitive labour, and emotional labour, and is mostly the work of women.

I am not complaining. Men have their own unpaid labour. I love being a mother and wife. I view it as a privilege and a blessing. Ideally, the job can also be supported by paid or unpaid help. My point is that the work of women, and specifically mothers, should be recognised and respected, not only by society, but also by women and mothers themselves.

I know it is not just me who has experienced conflicting emotions about ‘giving up’ traditional work to focus on family life. Within my social circle and more widely, mothers describe a loss of self-worth and identity unless they are ‘working mothers’, and feeling embarrassment and guilt when asked the dreaded question, “What do you do?” There is the loss of financial dignity that comes with taking on an unpaid job, no matter how important you may think it is. Dynamics with husbands also need to shift, where both members are viewed as equally valuable to making the business of ‘home’ successful.

Neha Ruch, the author of The Power Pause, is an American brand strategist-turned-full-time stay-at-home mother and home maker, who addresses this very issue. Many of my thoughts for this article are based on her book. She argues that the time a woman wishes to invest in this phase of life, motherhood and family life, is valuable, not just for the children or family unit, but for the mother herself. It is a time for growth, skill-building, and expanding networks and connections.

Often, it leads women in new, creative, and more fulfilling directions, and provides an opportunity for them to re-enter the workforce on their own terms. She also points out that ‘the pause’ is not a luxury for a lucky minority, as many women become the default caregiver for their children if childcare is too costly, or not the preferred option. Through the movement she has created, Ruch provides legitimacy, validation, and structure to this phase of life (because, after all, it is only a phase, not forever) that is often spoken of as mindless, monotonous, and unglamorous, and I am grateful for it.

I suppose what I am saying is, next time you meet a mother, consider asking her, “How are you?”, and next time I am asked what I do, I should proudly declare (using Ruch’s script), “Right now, I am on a career pause and get to be home with my baby, and I am exploring possibilities for the future.”

(Lihini Wijeyaratne Cooray

Lihini is rediscovering her love for writing while embracing first-time motherhood and her ‘Power Pause’. She is also navigating her roles as a doctor and PhD researcher. She hopes that her writing can inspire a fresh perspective on motherhood as being valuable, powerful, and exciting.)

by Lihini Wijeyaratne Cooray

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