In Brief

Mahatma Gandhi schols for 150 students

At a ceremony organised at the Ministry of Education, 150 students were awarded the prestigious Mahatma Gandhi Scholarship with Minister of Education, Bandula Gunawardena as the chief guest and with the presence of High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka Ashok K. Kantha. The ceremony was attended by senior officials of the Education Ministry, principals of leading schools in Colombo and parents of students.

Secretary Education, S.M. Gotabaya Jayarathna lauded the assistance provided under the Mahatma Gandhi Scholarship Scheme to 150 students from Sri Lanka, six each from the 25 districts. He said the scholarship, initiated in 2006 with an annual intake of 100 students, has assisted several needy students to continue their studies and complete the GCE Advanced Levels. He thanked the Government of India for increasing the scholarship amount to Rs. 2,000 per month and the number of students to 150 from this year. The fully-funded scholarships enable a student to pursue studies at undergraduate, masters and research scholar levels. A diverse range of disciplines are covered under the scholarships including Engineering, Science, Business, Economics, Arts, Dance and Music.

Cultural festival by Santiniketan Friends

The India Sri Lanka Foundation will support the organisation of a cultural festival titled 'Char Adhyaya' by Santiniketan Friends from tomorrow to Thursday at several venues in Colombo.

An art and sculpture exhibition will be held at the National Art Gallery from October 15-17 and will be inaugurated on October 15 at 5.00 p.m. Around 40 paintings by artists from India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Milan will be exhibited here.

The dance and musical show, 'Char Adhyaya' will be held at the John de Silva Theatre on October 16 at 7.00 p.m. Two dance and music shows titled 'Salamba' and 'Kanya' will be held at the Musaeus College Auditorium on October 17 and 18 at 7.00 p.m.

'Char Adhyaya' or Four Chapters covers the four cultural aspects of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore's life; music, dance, painting and drama. The festival will have performances by talented Sri Lankan artistes (alumni of Santiniketan) as well as performances by the students, teachers and artists from Santiniketan, India.

'Santiniketan Friends' is an organisation formed by the Sri Lankan alumni of Santiniketan with a vision of providing a launching pad for fresh Lankan graduates from Santiniketan as well as to promote Sri Lanka as a cultural hub for the promotion of art and culture in South Asia. It aims to promote Tagore's vision of unity through culture and fusion of expression through the medium of fine arts and culture.

'O' Negative kidney needed

Eighteen-year-old Minod Tisaru Divisanka, of President's College Mawatha, Rajagiriya, a Grade 13 student of Sri Jayawardanapura Vidyalaya, is in end stage kidney failure and Consultant Nephrologist of the Colombo National Hospital Dr. A.L.M. Nazar has recommended urgent kidney transplantation.

Donors with 'O' Negative blood group could contact his parents on 071-2707837, 075-7989307, 071-6561472. His parents also appeal to well-wishers for financial assistance which may be remitted to A/C No: 174200110010077, People's Bank, Rajagiriya branch.