Vidyaloka College is a boys' school in Galle, Sri Lanka. The school was established on 14 January 1941 by philanthropist Henry Woodward Amarasuriya under the patronage of Venerable Weliwitiye Punyasara Thera.[1] It is a national school which accommodates over 3,100+ students and provides primary and secondary education to them.[2] The school was re-constructed after it was badly affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004. Students are divided into four houses according to their admission number. These houses are named after four ancient kings of Sri Lanka. The college provides education to about 3,100+[citation needed] students from grade 1 to grade 13 and it is regarded as one of the leading boys' schools in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka.[according to whom?]

Vidyaloka College
logo of the vidyaloka college
Crest of Vidyaloka College
Location
Map

Coordinates6°02′05″N 80°13′00″E / 6.0348°N 80.2167°E / 6.0348; 80.2167
Information
TypeNational
MottoPali: Sukhō Paññāya Paṭilābhō
Sinhala: සුඛෝ පඤ්ඤාය පටිලාභෝ
(ප්‍රඥාව ලැබීම සැපයකි/Gaining wisdom is bliss)
Established14 January 1941; 83 years ago (1941-01-14)
FounderWeliwitiye Punyasara Thera
H. W. Amarasuriya
Grades1 to G.C.E. (A/L)
GenderBoys
Age6 to 19
Enrollment3,100 +
Houses  Ashoka
  Gemunu
  Prakrama
  Sangabo
Color(s)Maroon and white
  
SongDesha subushitha da abhimane
AffiliationBuddhist
Websitevidyalokacollegegalle.sch.lk

School boundaries

edit

The land named, Kekiri Obada Watta, where the school is located stretches up to the Wackwella road to the east, Vidyaloka Lane to the north, Sri Devamitta Mawatha to the West and Queens Cinema to the south. It is located on flat land of about of 0.81 ha (2 acres) situated in the middle of Galle.

Past principals

edit
  • 1941 - 1944  : E. A. C. Munasinghe
  • 1945 - 1964  : B. D. P. de Silva
  • 1964 - 1965  : A. Hendravitharana
  • 1965 - 1971  : B. K. de Silva
  • 1971 - 1977  : Chandradasa de Silva
  • 1977 - 1981  : Christy Nanayakkara
  • 1981 - 1995  : D. H. Senevirathna
  • 1996 - 2004  : M. B. L. de Silva
  • 2004 - 2010  : N. G. Gunapala
  • 2010 - 2013  : F. Welege
  • 2013–present  : Prasanna Senewiraththne

Sports

edit

Vidyaloka College is one of the best sports schools in the southern province. Sports at the college include Athletics, Kabaddi, Boxing, Chess, Cricket, Rugby, Soccer, Swimming, Volleyball, Table tennis, Badminton, Gymnastics, Carrom, Hokey and Karate.

Cricket

edit

Battle of the Glory of Galle is an annual one day encounter cricket match played between the cricket teams of Vidyaloka College and St. Aloysius' College. The contest commenced in 2019.

By 2024, four annual competitions have been held with St. Aloysius' College having won three 3 times, while Vidyaloka College has yet to win. In 2024, the match ended in a draw due to bad weather conditions.[3] Along with this, a one-day competition of under 15 is also held annually. The matches are be held at the Galle International Stadium...

The school previously played a two-day encounter, Friends Battle, against Meepawala Amarasuriya Vidyalaya on February every year at the Galle International Cricket Ground. The matches between these two colleges begun in 1998 and all the matches had been drawn. The competition finished in 2012.[4]

Notable alumni

edit

Education

edit
Name Notability Reference
Charles Dahanayake founding professor of physics University of Kelaniya, founding president Institute of Physics, Sri Lanka [5]
W. D. Lakshman Governor of the Central Bank, Vice Chancellor University of Colombo (1994–1999), Economist [6]
M. M. M. Najim Vice Chancellor, South Eastern University of Sri Lanka

Politics

edit
Name Notability Reference
Nanda Gunasinghe member parliament (Galle 1994–2001) [7]
Richard Pathirana Minister for Education and higher education (1994-2000), minister for State Administration, Home Affairs and Administration Reforms (2000–01), member of Sri Lankan parliament (1983-2001) [8]

Military

edit
Name Notability Reference
Renuka Rowel Major General, Chief Signals Officer - Sri Lanka Signals Corps [7]

Sports

edit
Name Notability Reference
Lasith Malinga international cricket player (2004–present) [9]
Ashan Randika Sri Lankan Cricketer [10]

Arts and media

edit
Name Notability Reference
W. Jayasiri actor, film director [7]

References

edit
edit