Features
Kandy Town I Knew In Mid-Twentieth Century
By Hm Nissanka Warakaulle
The former Kandy town now has progressed to a city. During the time Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) got independence Kandy was not a very busy town. In fact, after nine o’clock in the evening the town was dead except for very few people on the roads and in the eating houses and of course, the places where bacchanalian spirits were available.
There were no buses available after nine. From Saturday afternoon and Sunday whole day the town was devoid of any activity, except for a few hotels which were open such as the Silverdale, Paivas, East China Restaurant and the Muslim Hotel. The buses and taxis were also available till evening.
The most important landmark near the bus stand was the clock tower which had been constructed by Mr. Ismail, the owner of the motor spare parts shop close to where the clock tower stands. It was built in memory of his son who died in an accident when the vehicle he was riding went down the precipice at Kadugannawa.
Many people passing through Kandy check the time from this clock tower. From the day it was commissioned up to date it has indicated the correct time on all faces of the tower unlike most of the other clock towers that were erected in many parts of the country to coincide with the Gam Udawa.
The only stand for buses plying around Kandy and long-distance buses to places such as Anuradhapura was on the clock tower side of the road. The buses to Colombo were in the Goodshed bus stand past the railway station and the post office. In front of the old market was the stand for vehicles which included cars, vans and lorries.
The corner section in front of the Wales Theatre was the hiring car stand. Later, new bus stands were established with more buses being used. The town service buses to Peradeniya, Penideniya and Ampitiya were shifted to the new bus stand on Torrington Road. The Colombo buses had a new stand near the Technical College and the Scout Headquarters. Another bus stand was on King Street.
Up to the end of 1957 these bus stands were used by the buses of the private bus companies such as the Kandy Omnibus Company which operated the town services, the PS Bus Co. operating on the Daulagala area, the WH Bus Co. operating on the Hanguranketha area, Sri Lanka Bus Co on the Kandy -Colombo Road up to Kadugannawa, Madyamalanka Bus Co. which had the monopoly on the Gampola area and beyond and the Silverline Bus Co. operating beyond Katugastota. Once the bus services were nationalized in 1958 only the CTB buses used these bus stands.
The old market was an open building if my memory serves me right. It was octagonal in shape, with stalls all around located according to what they were selling. Vegetable stalls were in one row, fruits in another, the fish, beef and pork stalls in still another row. Dry goods and rice were in a separate area. There was no dried fish stalls in the old market as all the dried fish boutiques were at the bottom of Colombo Street which people used to refer to as the Karawala Kada Veediyan(dried fish street).
The streets in the town carried named different names from what they are today. Dalada Veediya from the Clock Tower junction up to the Dalada Maligawa was known as Ward Street with the statue of Governor Ward standing just past the Queen’s Hotel. Trincomalee Street was the old name of DS Senanayake Veediya. Yatinuwara Veediya was earlier known as Browrigg Street. Castle Hill Street is now Kotugodella Veediya. King Street is Raja Veediya. Beyond the Maligawa the road was known as Malabar Street.
With the new market coming up and with the demolition of the old one, the hiring car stand was done away with and the Wales Theatre too was demolished. The new Wales Theatre was constructed above Torrington Road. But later this too was demolished to construct the new DS Senanayake public library. Another cinema that was demolished was the Bogambara Theatre. This was demolished to give way to the new Bogambara Stadium.
Before the stadium came up, all inter- club football matches were played there. On Independence Day, we as schoolchildren participated in the march past which was also held at Bogambara. This playground was used during the Kandy Esala Perahera for the carnival which was patronized by most of the people who came to watch the Perahera.
Adjoining the Bogambara grounds was the Bogambara prison. When football matches and other events took place on Bogambara, some prisoners used to hang on the bars of the windows to watch the play. Now the prison has been shifted to Pallekele. On the other side of the Bogambara grounds was the road to the Kandy hospital and there was a bus plying from the Kandy bus stand to the hospital.
St Paul’s College was situated next to St. Paul’s Church. This school was shifted from its earlier location as it was within the Dalada Maligawa sacred area and a new school established in Asgiriya with the new name, Sri Sumangala Vidyalaya. Just near the pond with a fountain was the Magistrate’s Court. The other courts were behind the Dalada Maligawa.
Close to the Empire hotel were all the chambers of the lawyers. All these courts and lawyers’ chambers were shifted to the new court complex which came up between Getambe and Suduhumpola on the other side of the new road and railway line.
The Dalada Maligawa was not protected with barricades and vehicles going to Tennekumbura and beyond were able to go past the temple. People traveling by bus from beyond Lewella and from Talatuoya were able to alight just in front of the Temple and go in through any of the doors which were always kept open, worship and leave through any door. This unlike now where one must use the main entrance only. Now all the vehicular traffic going beyond the Temple have to go round the Kandy lake and get onto the Malabar Street through a byroad (even during a period when there is a scarcity of fuel).
Kandy town then was not that congested as it is now and there was less vehicular traffic. Parking was permitted anywhere in the town. This was possible as only a few owned vehicles at that time and most of the people used public transport. There were many rickshaws parked in many places of the town. Many people used this man drawn means of transport. In fact, when my elder brother and I were admitted to Kingswood College, we used to travel to school and back in a rickshaw. We used to egg the poor rickshaw puller to run faster not realizing that it made him more fatigued.
Kandy then had only the Queen’s Hotel as a starred hotel. Later the Suisse Hotel came up on the side of the lake where the Malwatta Temple is located. Other than these two, the smaller hotels in town were the Silverdale and Paivas on Brownrigg Street, Castle Hotel, King’s Hotel, Empire Hotel, Lyon’s Café and East China restaurant.
Travelling from the Colombo Road or the Gampola Road, vehicles had to take the Kandy-Peradeniya Road, up to Girls’ High School junction where the road bifurcates with one going past the Good Shepard Convent and the lower road going past the Railway station and the main post office to reach the town. The post office was situated just near the level crossing and a little further up on the same side of the railway line was the police station which was approachable from the lower road as well as the upper road.
Both of these were very old buildings though the architecture was nothing to write home about. But still they had some sort of a majestic look. Later, to ease the congestion on the Peradeniya Road, a new road was constructed from Getambe to Kandy along the Meda Ela embankment which was named William Gopallawa Mawatha which went past the Kandy Hospital to town.
The railway line from Kandy to Matale ran adjoining the bus stand, under the bridge of the upper road, past the Meerakkam mosque which was near the level crossing with the road leading to Asgiriya on either side of the mosque. Thereafter the railway line goes under the Mahaiyawa bridge to the station at Mahaiyawa. From there it proceeds to Katugastota by the side of the main road and crosses bridge over the Mahaweli river to get to the Katugastota station.
In addition to the normal trains, there were railcars that used to run from Katugastota to Kandy and from Kandy to Peradeniya. There were halts at places where there were schools and offices so that schoolchildren and office workers used to travel by these railcars which were never crowded.
There were only three banks in Kandy at that time. The Mercantile Bank beside Queen’s Hotel, National and Grindlays Bank on the upstairs of the building adjoining the entrance to Torrington Road. Then Bank of Ceylon too opened a branch on Ward Place. The one and only reputed laundry, Queen’s Laundry, was also on this road. The three churches in the heart of the town were the Methodist Church on Brownrigg Street, St. Paul’s Church on Pavilion Street and the Baptist Church on Ward Street.
Kandy had the famous Peradeniya Botanical Gardens. As schoolboys we used to go to the Gardens to play cricket as there was no admission fee charged. The other two parks in Kandy were the small park in front of Muslim Hotel, now named George E de Silva Park and the park known as Wace Park which is situated on the Upper Lake Road now named Deveni Rajasinghe Mawatha . From this park one gets a bird’s eye view of ad part of the Kandy City with the Maligawa.
Now Kandy is a much developed city with new hotels, shops, branches of almost all commercial banks and supermarkets having been established. There is the new attraction of the Kandy City Centre too. But the city is very congested both with vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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