Centenary celebration of Beruwala Al Fasiyathul Nasriya Muslim Balika MV

The centenary celebration of Maradana Beruwala Al Fasiyathul Nasriya Muslim Balika Maha Vidyalaya, the first Muslim girls’ school in Sri Lanka, and the issuance of the special commemorative stamp and the first day cover issued for it was held in the main hall of the school presided by Transport, Highways and Mass Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardhana.

A stamp worth 25 rupees and a first day cover were issued here to commemorate the centenary of the college which was established in 1924.

Addressing the ceremony the Minister said; “Issuing a commemorative stamp to commemorate the centenary of Sri Lanka’s first Islamic girls’ school in the historic town of Beruwala, the first Muslim settlement in Sri Lanka’s history and home to the first Islamic mosque, is a very special occasion.

We have two Muslim nationals that we highly respect, who held the highly responsible position of Speaker of Parliament. Bakir Markar, the father of Imtiaz Bakir Markar, and M. H. Mohammad were those two Muslim Speakers who worked to create a very high parliamentary tradition.

Imtiaz Bakir Markar also accomplished a great mission to build the bridge of thinking as children of one country based on the equality of Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims and Burghers without hatred.

Nelson Mandela once said that education is the most powerful weapon that can change the world. One of the main crises faced by this school throughout its history was the shortage of teachers and other facilities.

In many rural areas, due to the shortage of teachers, students mostly went to higher education from the arts department. Accordingly, there was no suitable job market for arts graduates from the universities, and there were no educated people suitable for the available jobs.

Many young people who could not find jobs related to the education they received became a group of people who hated their parents, the social system and the country. Because of that hatred, they were motivated to do many violent actions.

With an understanding of the situation, I as the former Minister of Education took steps to start the technology curriculum for advanced level in Sri Lanka amidst many challenges. For that purpose, a thousand technical laboratories with facilities were started in all parts of the country.

Thirteen faculties of technology have been established in universities across the country. The most popular A-level stream among students is Technology. Accordingly, we are providing the necessary contribution to this school, which is currently conducting only Arts and Commerce streams in the A-level section, to start the Technology stream in the coming year. I believe that parents will also contribute to find the necessary money and teachers.”

Special commemorative gifts were also presented to Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardhana who was the Chief Guest and other invited guests who joined the centenary celebration of the school.

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