Bandula Wijerathne (born, 1946 in Galle, Sri Lanka) is an Sri Lankan inventor lives in USA, businessman, and

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

. He also serves as a Professor of Clinical Medicine at the Kotelawala Defense University and he is appointed as an Ambassador for Science Technology and Innovation for

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. In addition, Wijay is the current President of LeoMed LLC, a medical device company. Wijay is an expert in innovative cardiovascular. Wijay has received Lifetime Achievement Award from

Maithripala Sirisena Maithripala Yapa Sirisena ( si, පල්ලෙවත්‍ත ගමරාළලාගේ මෛත්‍රීපාල යාපා සිරිසේන; ta, பல்லேவத்த கமராளலாகே மைத்திரி� ...

, President of Sri Lanka in 2016;

Vidya Jyothi The Vidya Jyothi ( si, විද්‍යාජෝති; ta, வித்யா ஜோதி, translit=Vityā Jōti) is a Sri Lankan national honour awarded "''for outstanding scientific and technological achievements''". It is the highest natio ...

award in 2017; and Ada Derana Sri Lankan Global Inventor of the Year in 2018.

Early life and education

Wijay was born in the southern city of

Galle Galle ( si, ගාල්ල, translit=Gālla; ta, காலி, translit=Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Souther ...

in Sri Lanka. His father, Benny Wijayarathna was a Principal and his mother Katherina Wijayarathna was the Head Mistress in a primary school. Wijay attended

Mahinda College Mahinda College is a Buddhist boys' school in Galle, Sri Lanka. The school was established on 1 March 1892 by the Buddhist Theosophical Society led by Colonel Henry Steel Olcott. As of May 2022 it is a national school providing primary and secon ...

until he completed the Advanced Level examination. After finishing Advanced Level examination, Wijay attended

Jadavpur University Jadavpur University is a public state university located in Jadavpur, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It was established in 1905 as ''Bengal Technical Institute'' and was converted into Jadavpur University in 1955. In 2022, it was ranked fourth am ...

on an Indian Government Cultural scholarship, India in 1967 to complete a degree in Chemical Engineering. In 1974, he received the

Fulbright Scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

to pursue higher studies at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

, where he first completed a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering and then a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. Later, he completed his doctorate in Chemical Engineering from the University of Southern California.

Career

In 1984, he started his entrepreneurial career, Wijay along with Dr. Paolo Angelini of the Texas Heart Institute, developed the angioplasty balloon catheter system along with the coronary artery perfusion pump system to be used during angioplasty. In 1995, Bandula invented the "Nested Loop" vascular stent, used in treating stenotic arteries after balloon angioplasty.

Selected awards

* 1995: Entrepreneur of the year, by

Merrill Lynch Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment bank ...

* 1998: Business Professional of the Year from the South Asian Chamber of Commerce * 2004: Lifetime Achievement Award from the Sri Lanka Foundation * 2016: Lifetime Achievement Award from Maithripala Sirisena, President of Sri Lanka * 2017: Vidya Jyothi Award * 2018: Ada Derana, Global Inventor award * 2018: Global Citizen award from the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Chapter in

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Memberships and appointments

* 2012-2017:

Honorary Consul A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

of Sri Lanka in Texas by Mahinda Rajapaksa, President of Sri Lanka * 2013-2016: Visiting Instructor of Bioengineering at the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...

(Victoria) * 2016-2019: Advisor, TMCX * 2016: Advisor, OPEN Entrepreneurship Network * 2017: Honorary Professor of Clinical Medicine at the Kotelawala Defense University. * University of Ruhuna – Advisor for Mechanical Engineering Design Examination * 2017: The Ambassador for Science, Technology, and Innovation for Sri Lanka by Maithripala Sirisena, President of Sri Lanka

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wijay, Bandula Vidya Jyothi 1946 births Alumni of Mahinda College American people of Sri Lankan descent Honorary consuls of Sri Lanka Jadavpur University alumni Living people People from Galle Sinhalese people Sri Lankan businesspeople University of Southern California alumni