OBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(23 November 1905 – 17 February 1979) was a leading
Ceylon Tamil
Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...
civil servant.
Early life
Alvapillai was born on 23 November 1905. He was the son of Kovindapillai and Seethevi Pillai (Thangam) from Thumpalai near
Point Pedro
Point Pedro ( ta, பருத்தித்துறை, translit=Paruttittuṟai; si, පේදුරු තුඩුව, translit=Pēduru Tuḍuva) is a town, located in Jaffna District, Sri Lanka, at the northernmost point of the island.
...
in northern
British Ceylon
British Ceylon ( si, බ්රිතාන්ය ලංකාව, Britānya Laṃkāva; ta, பிரித்தானிய இலங்கை, Biritthāṉiya Ilaṅkai) was the British Crown colony of present-day Sri Lanka between ...
. Alvapillai had an elder sister (Nagaratnam), younger brother (Sathasivam Pillai) and younger sister (Theva Yogam). His father died when Alvapillai was ten years old. He was educated at
Hartley College
Hartley College ( ta, ஹாட்லிக் கல்லூரி ''Hāṭlik Kallūri'') is a provincial school in Point Pedro, Sri Lanka. Founded in 1838 by British Methodist missionaries, it is one of Sri Lanka's oldest schools. The school i ...
, Point Pedro. He passed the
Senior Cambridge
The Senior Cambridge examinations were General Certificate of Education examinations held in India, Jamaica, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Singapore. They were preceded by the Junior Cambridge and Preliminary Cambridge examinations.
History India
The ...
examination with distinction and honours. He then went to
Ceylon University College
Ceylon University College was a public university college in Ceylon. Established in 1921, it was Ceylon's first attempt at university education. The college didn't award degrees under its own name but prepared students to sit the University of Lo ...
. After graduation he went to the
University of London
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
from where he graduated with a first class honours degree in mathematics.
Alvapillai married Kanagammah, daughter of V. Nallathamby and Vallipillai from
Tellippalai
Tellippalai or Thellippalai ( ta, தெல்லிப்பழை Tellippaḻai
. They had two sons (Vijayaraghavan and Senthilkumar) and a daughter (Bhavani).
Alvapillai was the President of the Colombo Vivekananda Society and Colombo Tamil Sangam and one of the founders of
Colombo Hindu College
(Katraangu Ozhuguga)
, motto_translation = Follow what you study
, streetaddress = 77 Lorensz Road
, region = Bambalapitiya
, city = Colombo
, province =
, postcode ...
.
Career
On returning to Ceylon Alvapillai joined the
Ceylon Civil Service
The Ceylon Civil Service, popularly known by its acronym CCS, was the premier civil service of the Government of Ceylon under British colonial rule and in the immediate post-independence period. Established in 1833, it functioned as part of the ...
in 1929 as a cadet. He was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Food Purchase in 1942. In 1945 he was appointed Director of Food Supplies. Later he became Food Commissioner. In 1953 he was appointed
Permanent Secretary
A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day ...
to the Minister of Agriculture and Food. In 1959 he became Permanent Secretary to the Minister of Commerce and Trade.
During his career Alvapillai worked for some of the leading ministers in post-independence Ceylon:
Oliver Goonetilleke
Sir Oliver Ernest Goonetilleke ( si, ශ්රිමත් ඔලිවර් ගුණතිලක) (20 October 1892 – 17 December 1978) was a Sri Lankan statesman. Having served as an important figure in the gradual independence of Ceyl ...
,
Philip Gunawardena
Don Philip Rupasinghe Gunawardena (11 January 1901 – 26 March 1972) was a Sri Lankan Marxist politician and leftist. A founder of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party, the first political party in Ceylon which was known for having introduced Trotskyi ...
,
T. B. Ilangaratne
Navaratne Rajakaruna Wasala Mudiyanselage Tikiri Bandara Ilangaratne (27 February 1913 – 21 May 1992), popularly as T. B. Ilangaratne, was a Sri Lankan politician, author, dramatist, and theater actor. He was a Member of Parliament for K ...
,
J. R. Jayewardene
Junius Richard Jayewardene ( si, ජුනියස් රිචඩ් ජයවර්ධන, ta, ஜூனியஸ் ரிச்சட் ஜயவர்தனா; 17 September 1906 – 1 November 1996), commonly abbreviated in Sri Lanka as ...
Maithripala Senanayake
Maithripala Senanayake (7 July 1916 – 12 July 1998) was a Sri Lankan politician and Governor of the North-Central province. He first studied at St. Joseph's College, Anuradhapura then at St. John's Jaffna, where he attained a mastery i ...
and V. A. Sugathadasa. He retired in 1965.
In the
1948 Birthday Honours
The 1948 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the Commonwealth Realms. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of the King, a ...
Alvapillai was made an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
.
After retirement Alvapillai served as Chairman of a number of state-owned corporations –
Ceylon Petroleum Corporation
Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, commonly known as CEYPETCO (CPC), is a Sri Lankan oil and gas company. Established in 1962 and wholly owned by the Government of Sri Lanka. It is largest oil company in the Sri Lanka. It was formed in 1961 by national ...
, Ceylon State Flour Corporation and Ceylon Shipping Corporation.