Sir Ratnasothy Saravanamuttu ( ta, இரத்தினசோதி சரவணமுத்து; born October 1886) was a

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 ...

physician, politician and the first

Mayor of Colombo The Mayor of Colombo is the Mayor (and head) of the Colombo Municipal Council. The post was created in 1866 when the Colombo Municipal Council was established by the Legislative Council of Ceylon. The Mayor is assisted by the Deputy Mayor and a ...

Early life and family

Saravanamuttu was born in October 1886. He was the son of Vetharniam Saravanamuttu, a physician from

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

Ceylon 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 ...

. His mother's family were from

Vaddukoddai Vaddukoddai (also spelt Vattukkottai, Vatukotai, Vattukotai) ( ta, வட்டுக்கோட்டை, si, වඩුකෝඩයි) is small but important town in the minority group, minority Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamil dominated J ...

in northern Ceylon. His paternal grandfather Vetharniam is reputed to be the founder of

Chunnakam Chunnakam ( ta, சுன்னாகம், translit=Cuṉṉākam; si, චුන්නාකම්, translit=Chunnakam) is a town, located north of Jaffna. It is one of the important commercial centres in Jaffna. The original name of the tow ...

, a small town in northern Ceylon. Saravanamuttu had five eminent brothers: Nanasothy, Tharmasothy, Paikiasothy, Manicasothy and Saptaranajyoti. He was educated at

S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia , motto_translation = Be Thou Forever , song = Thomian Song , athletics = Yes , sports = Yes , nickname = Thora , denomination = Anglican , patron ...

where he won many prizes. He earned a Bachelor of Medicine, Master of Surgery degree (M.B.C.M.) from the University of Madras. He then went to England where he obtained

M.R.C.S. Membership of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (MRCS) is a postgraduate diploma for surgeons in the UK and Ireland. Obtaining this qualification allows a doctor to become a member of one of the four surgical colleges in the UK and Ireland, namel ...

and Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians (L.R.C.P.) qualifications. Saravanamuttu married Naysum. They had two daughters (Seetha and Chandra) and two sons (Vetharaniam and Ratnakumar).

Career

After returning to Ceylon Saravanamuttu established a

dispensary A dispensary is an office in a school, hospital, industrial plant, or other organization that dispenses medications, medical supplies, and in some cases even medical and dental treatment. In a traditional dispensary set-up, a pharmacist dispen ...

in northern Colombo which soon grew to become a large medical centre. Saravanamuttu was a member of Colombo Municipal Council from May 1937 to December 1946. He served as

from May 1937 to December 1937 and from January 1941 to December 1942. He contested the 1931 State Council election as a candidate in Colombo North and was elected to the

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative auth ...

. However, he was unseated after being found guilty of corrupt practices by an election Judge. His wife, Naysum, was elected in the ensuing

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

, becoming the second female member of the State Council in 1931. He was a member of the Liberal League before founding the Independent Labour Party which was later absorbed by the Ceylon National Congress. He played a major role in the relief following the Japanese bombing of Colombo in April 1942. Saravanamuttu received a knighthood as a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

for public services in the

1943 New Year Honours The 1943 New Year Honours were appointments by King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on 29 December 1942.United Kingdom (additiona ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saravanamuttu, Ratnasothy 1886 births Alumni of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia Ceylonese Knights Bachelor Mayors of Colombo Members of the 1st State Council of Ceylon People of British Ceylon Sri Lankan Tamil physicians Sri Lankan Tamil politicians University of Madras alumni Year of death missing