Kalutara Vidyalaya

Kalutara Vidyalaya (Sinhala: කළුතර විද්‍යාලය) is a Buddhist boys' school in Kalutara, Sri Lanka. The college was founded in 1941 by Sir Cyril de Zoysa. It is a national school providing primary and secondary education.[1]

Kalutara Vidyalaya
කළුතර විද්‍යාලය
Location
Sri Lanka
Coordinates6°34′27″N 79°57′53″E
Information
TypePublic
MottoSinhala: දෑ සමය සුරකිනු
(Save the Race & Creed)
Established13 January 1941 (1941-01-13)
FounderSir Cyril de Zoysa
PrincipalHarshana Peiris
GradesPrimary to G.C.E. (A/L)
GenderBoys
Age6 to 19
Enrollment3,500
Colour(s)Dark green, light green, dark green    
AlumniKevians
Kalutara Vidyalaya Main Building

History

In order to provide education to the Buddhist children of Kalutara district, the Kalutara Buddhist Society, led by Sir Cyril de Zoysa, tried to start a Buddhist school in Kalutara.

As a result, Kalutara Vidyalaya was officially established on 13 January 1941, with 56 students and eleven teachers at the Martin Bungalow in Nagoda, Kalutara.

In the beginning, the college was led by P. De S. Kularatne (principal of Ananda College), J. N. Jenendradasa (principal of Nalanda College), and E. W. Adikaram (principal of Ananda Sastralaya, Kotte). Later, D. D. P. Samaraweera became the first principal of the college.

The original motto of the college was "Uthsaha wanthan jananan kin nasadhiyanthi" but later it was changed to "De Samaya Surakinu." The school song of the college was composed by Anangalal Athukorala.

After only six months, the college became a senior secondary school. At the beginning, Kalutara Vidyalaya at the Martin Bungalow was a mixed school. On 7 January 1942, Kalutara Balika Vidyalaya was established in Clammily House by P. de S. Kularatne as the girls' school, with Kalutara Vidyalaya becoming a boys' school.

On 18 March 1942, the Royal Air Force took over the school for their use during World War II.

After a short break, Kalutara Vidyalaya recommenced as Kalutara Balika Vidyalaya. Sir Cyril de Zoysa noticed that it was hard to develop two schools and handed over his Brookline House to the Kalutara Balika Vidyalaya.

In April 1946, the college began offering free education and was transferred across to the government. In 1998, the college became a national school.

Today the school has about 3,500 students and more than 120 teachers.

Sir Cyril de Zoysa Statue in Kalutara Vidyalaya

First staff
  • D. D. P. Samaraweera – principal
  • Al-Haj Badurdeen – vice principal (former Minister of Education)
  • A. Athukorala – first art teacher
  • Prasanna 'Perry' Perera – first student

Houses

The boys are divided into four houses, led by house captains. The houses compete in inter-house games and house colours are awarded to winners. The houses are:

  • Sena (brown)
  • Tissa (red)
  • Tilaka (orange)
  • Anura (white)

Principals
  • 01. D. P. Samaraweera
  • 02. H. M. Darmapriya
  • 03. C. D. S. Siriwardane
  • 04. Layanal Lokuliyane
  • 05. M. B. Rathnayake
  • 06. D. A. Weerasinghe
  • 07. Dencil A. Silva
  • 08. Upali Philip Senarathne
  • 09. Gamini Goonerathne
  • 10. A. G. de Silva
  • 11. A. G. Weththasinghe
  • 12. Thanthirige D. Ariyasena
  • 13. H. Sarathchndra Silva
  • 14. P. W. Nelson Perera
  • 15. Mithrasena Ratiyala
  • 16. K. A. D. Punyadasa
  • 17. I. D. Piyarathne
  • 18. Mahanama Siriwardena
  • 19. H. M. Gunarathne
  • 20. K. Rathnaweera Perera
  • 21. H. Sarathchndra Silva
  • 22. K. I. J. Peiris
  • 23. M. Harshana Peiris

Battle of the Mangosteen

The annual cricket encounter between Kalutara Vidyalaya and Tissa Central College, known as the "Battle of the Mangosteen", has been held since 1949. It is the second-oldest big match between two leading Buddhist schools in Sri Lanka and the 11th longest running big match in Sri Lanka.

In 1949, Herbert de Silva for Kalutara Vidyalaya and Gamini Karunaratne for Tissa Central College made history as the captains of the Battle of the Mangosteen's debut match. With Kalutara Vidyalaya succeeding in recording the victory in that match, the name of Herbert de Silva is written as the first winning captain, and the name of Kalutara Vidyalaya is written as the first winning team. The first time Tissa Central College won the match in the history of the Battle of the Mangosteen was recorded in 1958. The team is led by A. K. D. Jayaweera.

So far, 62 matches have been played. Kalutara Vidyalaya has won 23 matches, and Tissa Central College has won 6 matches. 33 matches have resulted in draws.

Notable alumni

References
  1. Amunugama, Sarath (2 January 2011). "Sir Cyril did much for Buddhists of Kalutara". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
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