Tribute to Dr Nisal T. Kurukulasuriya (BUNTY) – An icon in the field of Obstetrics and Gynaecology – By Sunil Thenabadu Homage to dear friend Bunty on his 6th Death anniversary which falls on 23rd December 2021  I was bewildered and dumbfounded to see the obituary notice on the internet of my venerable friend and acclaimed Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Dr Nisal T. Kurukulasuriya (Bunty) on the early morning of the 13th January 2016. According to the obituary, Bunty had passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife, children and grandchildren on the 21st December 2015 and had been cremated on the following day according to his wishes. To relieve my anguish, I sent an email immediately to his beloved wife Dayaneetha, conveying my shock and profound sorrow to which she replied almost immediately. “Dear Sunil, Thank you so much for your message. The children and I are devastated. I lost the ...

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Learning @ Home-BY RUWANTHI ABEYAKOON Source:Sundayobserver Education emergency is the most devastating matter Covid-19 pandemic brought about. UNICEF surveys confirm that over 190 countries closed schools in response to the health emergency. Reports suggest more than one billion children are at risk of falling behind due to school closures aimed at containing the spread of the virus. As a result, many countries turned to implementing distance learning programs on a wide-scale. Even though online education was not accepted by both teachers and parents with open minds at the beginning, online education was the best alternative that they could turn to. Despite challenges and setbacks, learning can continue through online platforms during the times of crisis. Fortunately, technology today offers a wide variety of methods to support distance education. Yet it should be decided what are the best combinations of interventions that are needed to transfer from paper-based approaches to online ...

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Dr. Jagath Wellawatta to be appointed HC to Australia   Source:-dailynews.lk Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation (SLIC) Chairman Dr.Jagath Wellawatta has been nominated as High Commissioner-designate to Australia. Wellawatta’s corporate experience spans across a spectrum of diverse fields, encompassing high level decision making within the private sector, to policy making at national level. In his long history in the capacity of driving national policy, Wellawatta served as the Chairman of the State Mortgage and Investment Bank (from May 2010 to January 2015) and was the former Chairman of the National Child Protection Authority (from April 2007 to May 2010). He also served as the Chairman of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (from December 2005 to April 2007). Supporting the formulation of national policies through his academic career as a practicing sociologist, Wellawatta served as a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Sociology, University of Colombo. He has nearly 29 ...

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The importance of English-by Professor Sanath P. Lamabadusuriya Source:Island In the recent past, there has been a lot of correspondence, in the print media, regarding the medium of instruction in schools. Some scholars have advocated the introduction of English, very early during the formative years of children; the advantages of which would be better prospects for employment, both locally and abroad. Others have stressed the importance of preserving the mother tongue mainly for cultural reasons. I agree with both points of view. I think we should learn a lesson from our neighbour, India. With a population of 1.36 billion people (2019). Having 19,500 different dialects, 121 of which are spoken as the mother tongue and 121 languages being spoken, their national policy, since they gained independence in 1947, has been for every child to know three languages; mother tongue (Tamil, Urdu, Bengali,Telugu, etc.), national language (Hindi) and an international language ...

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Religious extremism and the teachings of the founders of religions The burqa ban announcement caused a stir among Muslims, who saw it as yet another attack on their community. In the past few months, the government has undertaken a number of controversial measures under the banner of fighting extremism, which have increasingly intimidated the Muslim population and disregarded rule of law principles – Farzana Haniffa, Head of the Department of Sociology at the University of Colombo writing in the Al Jazeera on the 12 Apr 2021 By Raj Gonsalkorale The Justice and the Law Society (JATL) of the University of Queensland is a vital organisation within the TC Beirne School of Law. An active society with diverse membership, JATL performs an important role in promoting awareness of social justice issues in the law. In a well-researched and informative article titled “Debate on the Burqa” (http://www.jatl.org/blog/2014/10/19/debate-on-the-burqa), the multiple facets associated with the origins and ...

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 “MEMORIES OF WELLAWATTE” – By Des Kelly   Heading down from Bambalapitiya to Wellawatte, where I personally knew so many guys & dolls, it was almost impossible to keep track of everyone, especially after the mass-exodus of our Burgher folk, from the Island. This magnificent “memorial” sent to me, from Maxie Gerreyn is truly a great read, and once again, I thank him so very much for keeping these precious memories going. Desmond Kelly (Editor-in-Chief)  eLanka.    A TRIBUTE TO THE FAMILIES OF ARETHUSA LANE, MADANGAHAWATTE LANE AND THE CANAL END OF HAMPDEN LANE   sent in to the blog by Jennifer de Silva What wonderful memories of those carefree days in Arethusa Lane – the boys playing cricket on the weekends and school holidays, the whistle of the Borakakul Karaya (man on stilts dressed as a woman) as he made his rounds, the Sakkili Band waking everyone up from ...

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  Click here or on the image below to read this week’s elanka Newsletter Burgher Association Australia Inc – Christmas Lunch (Melbourne event) St Peter’s College Old Boys Social Club – Peterite Melbourne Rugby Group presents Scrum Down – Rugby Fellowship Dinner Dance Spring Breeze Dinner Dance 2019 September Breeze – Live Music with Cazcade Band & Trevine Joseph (and DJ Sebb) – Sydney event Mind Connections and Positive Vibes Foundation presents Pawsitive – steps towards mental health – Mind, Doggy and Spirit festival (Sunday 29th September 2019) – Sydney (Castle Hill) event University of Colombo Alumni Association of NSW presents – Golden ball – A Night of Elegance (Sydney event) Cruise Dance & Dine on Luxury STARSHIP Click below for events ...

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