Keheliya Rambukwella Primary School renamed Kundasale Royal Primary School

Central Province Governor, Professor S.B.S. Abayakoon, approved the immediate renaming of ‘Keheliya Rambukwella Primary School’ in the Kundasale Division of the Wattegama Education Zone, Kandy, on October 16, 2024.

The school will now be called ‘Kundasale Royal Primary School.’

The decision followed public requests to remove the names of corrupt politicians from local schools.

The proposal was submitted by the Structural Committee of the Provincial Department of Education.

This change also complies with a 1996 Ministry of Education circular that prohibits naming schools after living individuals.

Joseph Stalin, General Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers’ Union, criticized the original decision to name the school after Keheliya Rambukwella, citing his involvement in the controversial immunoglobulin procurement scandal.

The school, originally established in 1939 as ‘S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike Vidyalaya,’ has undergone several name changes, including ‘Naththarampotha Vidyalaya’ and ‘Kundasale Maha Vidyalaya,’ due to various educational reforms.

In 2012, as part of the “Nearest School, Best School” project, a new building was constructed, and the school was renamed ‘Keheliya Rambukwella Primary School.’

Additionally, the Governor ordered the renaming of schools in the Minipe Education Zone, Teldeniya, as part of these broader changes.