Ruwanwella Rajasinghe Central College
Dr. C.W.W. Kannangara’s educational development policies saw the establishment of 54 central colleges, in the 54 electoral divisions of the country. The electorate of Ruwanwella then extended up to the borders of the Rathnapura district and there fore the area covered under it was four times larger than today. Two towns existed in the electorate. They were Ruwanwella and Eheliyagoda.
A so-called competition arose as to where the new central college should be located. More words were spoken on behalf of Eheliyagoda. The three korales in which Ruwanwella stood was considered as an area where two classes of people lived, the higher class consisting of “WALAWWA” nobles, and the other being of down-ridden peasants.
The walawwa nobles did not want to have higher schools in the area. If the low-castes get educated, there won’t be servants for us was their motto. Their sons went to higher schools in distant towns. The lesser privileged in the area went to the bi-lingual school situated in the Ruwanwella town, where they got a simple education to suit the needs of either a Sinhala medium school or a government petty office.
Under the guidance of the then principal of the bi-lingual school, Mr. M.S. De Silva, who himself was a graduate in science, the general folk consisting of a few understandable virtuous people started a company (now a days a strike) asking the Department of Education to establish the central College in Ruwanwella. This step was encouraged by the students of the bi-lingual school who came out of classes to join the up-roar. Perhaps this can be the first “STRIKE” that took place in the sphere of Education.
The department had to bow down its head and Ian Sandemon, the director of eduction wrote on the 19th of August 1945 – thus:
My dear reader,
You may like to read something about the history of Ruwanwella, where our new educational institution started in the said way.
The cave with Brahmi inscriptions on their brow-ridges that stand in three or four religious places around, tells that Ruwanwella has a history of more than 1500 years. When the Portuguese landed in the country and when those unlikely people wanted to challenge the strength of the up country Sinhalese, they walked through Ruwanwella where they stationed their men for sometime. The Dutch made a small garrison with pointed stakes and later the British converted it in to a fortress. The remains still lie in the heart of the town in the area housing the Police station and Pradesheeya Sabha today.
The famous “Petagoda Garden” which was a coconut estate owned by the kings of the up country and also where the Highnesses” elephants where trained, lies close to Ruwanwella.
The Biso panna gala (Rock where queens jumped down) seen in the western side town, tells the pathetic tale…… The king went to war, the queens of his harem wanted to know the results, thus climbed on to the rock; the signal man gave a wrong signal as a joke, and miss-understanding, they all jumped down and committed suicide……
The earlier said Petangoda Uyana still bears the thorn bamboo bush that is said to have brought untimely death to Rajasingha. Karawanella is Koravu valla the place where the king went limp and got paralyzed.
Ruwanwella is the major town of the “Three Korales”. The three korales bore many heros for the wars of Mayadunne and Rajasinghe against Portuguese.
Mr. m. S. De Silva, a chemistry graduate of the London University was chairing the bi-lingual school in 1945. Due to the careful, evil eyes of the nobility (not all) the people could not understand the difference between a school, bi-lingual school, a college or a central college. “They studied in great schools in Colombo” , the innocent people may refer to land lords’ sons and only that. At such a time Mr. Silva had the courage to gather some interested people into a Guru Deguru Samithiya, in which “Gurus’ actually were, but Degurus few. He managed to get a temporary living place in one Mr. Jayasinghe’s home, who was an understanding philanthropist. With his two feet secure he proceeded to construct a hostel for girls who, by then were selected from the grade V scholarship. A boy’s hostel too came up in a different place. All were cadjan roofed, wattle and mud walled. But they stood for the honorable cause. The place where the bi-lingual school was, in the centre of the town was not a suitable place with an honorable vicinity for a central college. (Ian Sandemon only wrote “I may upgrade the bi-lingual school” but did nothing more).
Mr. Siva selected the land in which the college stands now and I think with the sponsorship of the noble family of Ekneligodas who donated the land and in the words of a past pupil and also a teacher at the beginning, brought the school “from a realm of nothingness to a realm”.
Mr. M. F. G. Perera assumed duties as the principal on 01-01-1948. This writer meets many of his students today. “It was the best of times. In office he was majestic, in class was an actor, in playground he was a friendly player” said one of his students who is now a retired principal.
.I may speak reverently about his successor Mr. C Rajadorei. If there would have been no Rajadorei, this introduction could have been written by some other one, as I may not learned enough to write this. “Go, be an important man than your father” he said”, he tolled me when I went to him with S.S.C. qualifications to be a Public Health Inspector. He selected students who passed the S.S.C. examination (The G.C.E.O/L today), took them to Jaffna with parent’s permission, made them enter higher education levels there and made them doctors, engineers, ambassadors and more. He surely may be in heaven looking at me writing this.
After his departure, the college came to a swinging stage due to many reasons. But I may here mention about Mr. H. P. De Silva who was named and nick named “GENTLEMAN”. Very slow but steady in movements, he loved and honoured by students. “Leadership in platoon is good. But leadership glistens with education. Go to camp. Command there. We like. But come back a different boy he told me when we were to leave for the cadet camp at Diyatalawa. Sure I became a different person even before coming back.
Mr. K.K.V.S. De Silva was a figure one can rarely meet. His leadership was accepted by all students, teachers, and minor employees. He came in his Peugeot car, the office peon was at hand to open the door for him, only then he comes out of the vehicle. One can see the whole school attentive. Very majestic inside office, he was a talented teacher in the classroom.
Then Mr. D.A.G. Dissanayaka assumed duties as the principal. A brilliant student, teacher and principal, he knew all nooks and corners of the school. Many changes for the good of the school took place during his period of office. As a teacher, the writer can remember how he taught history. He was an example of kindness.
Mr. D.D. Ariyarathna who entered the school in about 1950 as a student, retired as the head of the school in 1998, getting absent from school four yeas to get his degree in Peradeniya University. I use the word “Absent” here, as he was so attached to the school. The student population rose, many buildings came up, the college shone in many extra curricular activities, doctors, professors, lecturers, engineers, political figures, and high personalities abroad went through his hands. He came early to school and went ate home. If I say Ariyarathna was school and school was school, I do not know it would suffice him.
A period of three years were in the hands of Mr. E. M. Ranasinghe. He too was a past pupil of our college. He left the post of Director of Education to come to serve his alma master.
Now comes our present principal Mr. W. A. A. Wickramasinghe. Having a large heart with a good knowledge of the institution, he is apt to work. We as past pupils of the school eagerly hope many extra developments from him
****(source ruwanwella rajasinhe college official website)****
