North Western Province is a province of Sri Lanka. The province consists of the districts of Kurunegala and Puttalam. Its capital is Kurunegala, which has a population of 28,571. The province is known mainly for its numerous coconut plantations. Puttalam, Kuliyapitiya, and Chilaw are the other major cities in the North Western Province. The majority of the population of Wayamba province is of Sinhalese ethnicity. There is also a substantial Sri Lankan Moor minority around Puttalam and Sri Lankan Tamils in Udappu and Munneswaram. Fishing, prawn farming and rubber tree plantations are other prominent industries of the region. The province has an area of 7,888 km2, and a population of 2,370,075.
Kurunegala is a major city in Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of the North Western Province and the Kurunegala District. Kurunegala was an ancient royal capital for 50 years, from the end of the 13th century to the start of the 14th century. It is at the junction of several main roads linking to other important parts of the country. It is about 94 kilometres (58 mi) from Colombo, 42 kilometres (26 mi) from Kandy and 51 kilometres (32 mi) from Matale.
Education in Sri Lanka has a long history that dates back two millennia. While the Constitution of Sri Lanka does not provide free education as a fundamental right, the constitution mentions that 'the complete eradication of illiteracy and the assurance to all persons of the right to universal and equal access to education at all levels" in its section on directive principles of state policy at (27. Sri Lanka's population had an adult literacy rate of 96.3% in 2015, which is above average by world and regional standards. Computer literacy in 2017 28.3% and phone users in 2017 105%, website users 32% in 2017. Education plays a major part in the life and culture of the country, which dates back to 543 BC. Sri Lanka's modern educational system modeled after Christian missionary system was brought about by its integration into the British Empire in the 19th century. Education currently falls under the control of both the Central Government and the Provincial Councils, with some responsibilities lying with the Central Government and the Provincial Council having autonomy for others. Education institutions with a tradition dating back to 5 BC are largely ignored by the state.
Maliyadeva College is a national school controlled by the Sri Lankan central government. It is located in Kurunegala, Sri Lanka, and was established in 1888 by the Buddhist Theosophical Society, led by Colonel Henry Steel Olcott. It is one of Sri Lanka's oldest schools. Today, the school accommodates 5,000 students. The term "Devans" is used to refer to the former and present pupils of Maliyadeva College.
Patrick de Silva Kularatne was a Sri Lankan educationist and politician. He was a Member of the State Council of Ceylon (1942-1947) and Member of Parliament (1960-1965). He served as Principal of Ananda College and Dharmaraja College and established Nalanda College Colombo, Ananda Balika Vidyalaya, Moratuwa Vidyalaya and Dharmapala Vidyalaya. As a member of the executive committee on Education, he played an instrumental role in the realisation of free education from kindergarten to university.
St. Anne's College, Kurunegala, is a Roman Catholic boys' school located in Kurunegala, Sri Lanka. Established by Francis Saviour in 1867. Students of St. Anne's College are known as Annites.
The Church of Ceylon is the Anglican Church in Sri Lanka. It is an extraprovincial jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who serves as its Metropolitan. It was established in 1845 with the appointment of the first Anglican Bishop of Colombo, James Chapman and until 1950 it consisted of a single diocese; in that year a second diocese was established at Kurunegala.
Tuan Burhanuddin Jayah, was a Sri Lankan educationalist, politician, diplomat and Muslim community leader and considered one of Sri Lanka's national heroes. He started his career as a school teacher and retired after serving 27 years as the principal of Zahira College, Colombo. Under his stewardship, Zahira College became one of the leading schools in the country.
The Scholarship Examination is a highly competitive Sri Lankan examination first introduced in 1944, conducted by the Department of Examinations of the Ministry of Education. It is optional for students to undertake it during the final year of primary school. Based on the results of the exam, students could transfer to prominent national schools. The exams are held in two mediums: Sinhala and Tamil
Duminda Dissanayake, MP, is the current Sri Lankan Cabinet Minister of the Ministry of Irrigation, former Minister of Agriculture, deputy minister of Youth Affairs and Skills Development and a Member of Parliament from the Anuradhapura District.
Navin Eranjan Dissanayake is a Sri Lankan politician, and former Minister of Plantation Industries. A former Member of Parliament for United National Party Nuwara Eliya District, he is a son of Gamini Dissanayake a Presidential candidate and grandson of Andrew Dissanayake who served as an MP for the Nuwara Eliya electorate and a deputy minister in the S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike's government. His brother, Mayantha Dissanayake is an MP for UNP from Kandy District. He was educated at S. Thomas' Preparatory School and Royal College Colombo.
Salinda Dissanayake was a Sri Lankan politician. He was member of Parliament from Kurunegala District and Sri Lankan Non-Cabinet Minister of Nation Building.
J.P. Dayasiri Padma Kumara Jayasekara is a Sri Lankan politician who is presently serving as a Member of Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, and is the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). He is the District Leader of the SLFP for the Kurunegala District and Organizer for the Paduwasnuwara Electorate, which is the center of the once historic Paduwasnuwera Kingdom.
Kurunegala electoral district is one of the 22 multi-member electoral districts of Sri Lanka created by the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka. The district is conterminous with the administrative district of Kurunegala in the North Western province. The district currently elects 15 of the 225 members of the Sri Lankan Parliament and had 1,183,649 registered electors in 2010.
Anuradhapura electoral district is one of the 22 multi-member electoral districts of Sri Lanka created by the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka. The district is conterminous with the administrative district of Anuradhapura in the North Central province. The district currently elects 9 of the 225 members of the Sri Lankan Parliament and had 579,261 registered electors in 2010.
Mayantha Yaswanth Dissanayake is a Member of Parliament from Kandy District. He was a Provincial Councillor of the Central Provincial Council. He was SLFP organizer to Ampara District under former president Mahinda Rajapaksa. 2010 he supported General Sarath Fonseka in 2010 presidential election and crossover from SLFP to UNP. He appointed as chief organizer to Ududumbara electorate, Nawalapitiya electorate and at last Yatinuwara electorate. A few years later he polled the second highest number of preferential votes in the Kandy district to be elected as a Councillor of the Central Provincial Council. He is a son of Gamini Dissanayake, a Presidential candidate and a powerful minister of the United National Party from 1977 to 1994. A grandson of Andrew Dissanayake who served as an MP for the Nuwara Eliya electorate and a deputy minister in the S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike's government. His brother, Navin Dissanayake is an MP for UNP from Nuwara Eliya District. He was educated at the Royal College Colombo.
Narammala(Sinhala: නාරම්මල, romanized Narammala, Tamil: நாரம்மல, romanized Na´rammalei) is a major town in Sri Lanka, situated in the middle of the North Western Province, 85.3 km (53.0 mi) from Colombo via the Colombo - Katunayake Expressway or 54 km (34 mi) from Negombo via Mirigama-Nakalagamuwa Expressway. Narammala is connected to Sri Lankan transport network by Kurunegala-Colombo 5 road and Kurunegala-Negombo 34 road. Narammala is 74 km away from Colombo and 18 km away from Kurunegala. This beautiful town is surrounded by blocks of Paddy fields and Coconut estates. Narammala is site of the world's first and only betel research lab and institute, which is located at Dampelessa, 3.5 km (2.2 mi) from the Narammala town centre.
Gamini M. Premachandra was a Sri Lanka politician who served as the Cabinet Minister of Labour and Vocational Training of United National Party government from 1990 to 1994. He was re-elected from the Parliamentary election of 1994. He was assassinated by a female suicide bomber of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) while attending an election rally in support of Gamini Dissanayake, for the Presidential election of 1994. He was an alumnus of Maliyadeva College, Kurunegala.
Anuradhapura Central College is a mixed educational establishment in North Central Province, Sri Lanka. Anuradhapura Central College is a national school, which provides secondary education.
Heen Banda Dissanayake, SLAS was a Sri Lankan civil servant. He was the Governor of the Central Bank of Ceylon.
![The pioneer in the establishment of school [C.W.W.Kannangara ("The Father of Free Education") ] Dr.C.W.W Kannangara.jpg](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9a/Dr.C.W.W_Kannangara.jpg/220px-Dr.C.W.W_Kannangara.jpg)
