Horton Place to be renamed as Ponnamabalam Arunachalam Mawatha

18 January 2024 08:21 am - 49 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

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Colombo, Jan 18 (Daily Mirror) - Residents of Horton Place are up in arms against the proposal by the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) to rename the road as Ponnambalam Arunachalam Mawatha, a resident told Daily Mirror.

One time Mayor of Colombo Omar Kamil said a notice has been distributed to the residents in the area calling for objection against the renaming of the road. “The notice distributed by the CMC says a motion has been passed by the council to rename the road. However one wonders as to why a motion was passed in a situation where the council has ceased to function a year ago,” Mr. Kamil said.

The notice distributed to the residents said a motion has been passed by the CMC to name the road belonging to Kurunduwatte ward within the administration limits of CMC, starting from assessment number 75 of C.W.W. Kannangara Mawatha and assessment no 75 of Horton Place and terminates between assessment number 11 and 120 of Horton place as Ponnambalam Arunachalam Mawatha.

“We wonder how the road can be renamed when there is an avenue named Ponnambalam Arunachalam Avenue close by. This is small avenue is off Horton place,” Mr. Kamil added.

Former Member of CMC Shermila Gonawala who was commenting on the matter said no such motion was brought to the council during the days when it was functioning. “Some ladies living down Horton place called me many times and requested me to stop this move. They say they will have to go through the hassle of getting their various documents changed,” she said.

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Comments - 49

Mongol CMC Thursday, 18 January 2024 08:46 AM

No no. There is a better name. Please name it as Mahaa Keerthidhara Anuhas Bodhiraajapandithalaage Shaakya Vibhuuthi Sundara Nihathamaana Agra Panditha Agga Sabhaachaara Jaathishoora Jaathi hithaishee Apachaara Aachaarya Siripaala Gunaananda Maawatha.

Pujitha Thursday, 18 January 2024 08:46 AM

Absolute nonsense. So many road renamed it makes everything so confusing. When you get an address today you don't know where it withunnecessarily long new names to appease a few and boost ego's of others. Can we roll back to the old names please. If a new road is built reconsider naming it anew. Otherwise please let sanity prevail and use the old short names. Dickman, Horton, Alexandra, Green Path any donkey can read and pronounce it. Don't authorities have better and more urgent and important things to do than change road names. Like ensuring trees don't fall and kill people? Like main roads are dug up and left blocking whole lanes in major arteries without adequate warning for road users and not visible at night until it is very late.

joshua Thursday, 18 January 2024 08:53 AM

what a waste of time by these government servants? They not only waste their time, also compel the residents too go through the mess. Horton place is a nice name and why on earth do these fellows have to change it? Absolute muts

Ram Thursday, 18 January 2024 08:55 AM

Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam was a great servant of Sri Lanka who served the country without any fear or favour. He must be respected and a statue of his at a suitable venue is welcome. I do not agree to naming the established roads with these names. In my mind this is a ruse to get the Tamils support for elections and not to honour him.

Hemantha Thursday, 18 January 2024 11:44 AM

There is a statue in the ground of the old parliament.

Mahendra Fernando Thursday, 18 January 2024 09:10 AM

Who even proposes such things? Leave road names simple. Confused priorities

sacre blieu Thursday, 18 January 2024 09:25 AM

A joke in the worst state. This is vote buying for Ranil. Voters should not compromise the destiny of this country and its citizens at any price.

Lahiru Wijenaike Thursday, 18 January 2024 09:25 AM

Do the cmc administrators have a weekly "stress the residents" quota? Just leave us be

Citizen k Thursday, 18 January 2024 09:36 AM

Why not bring back original names ,as we plan to attract tourist ,these names are so hard to pronounce.There are many ways to honour them and this is not one of them.Look at most of the Asian countries they have kept the original names.

Thenuka Thursday, 18 January 2024 09:57 AM

Fully agree.

Trehan Munasinghe Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:00 AM

1st make sure roads that are dug are properly closed and repaired in the same month, look at what has happened on highlevel road, one set of muts dig it for pipes and the entire road is messed-up up, this is obviously a done method to Rob money and material when the road is eventually repaired. 2nd ensure the all street lights are working or switched on, most of the people driving find it extremely difficult, especially from the constant light changes from bright to dark sections. This is noticeable on many main roads. Do not change road names, name new ones with what ever, but leave the old ones as they are.

BuffaloaCitizen Thursday, 18 January 2024 12:20 PM

How about the bridge on Marine drive just after the coast guard camp. Johnston proudly stated it will be completed in three months, it is now six years and still not finished. It could be a Guinness record for a bridge which is just 50m in size.

blue moon Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:00 AM

there are so many good to be changed in this country such as 255 MPs why in the blue moon they change the road name that exist years.

Mk Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:06 AM

Opening ceremony spend 50,0000/- FIFTY LACKS.

Inshi Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:34 AM

Renaming roads will lead to utter confusion and create problems for the residents. The late man has already been honoured and the road is named after a Governor Horton. Better to focus on what can be done to improve the lives of the people instead.

Jaffna Hindu High Caste Tamil Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:37 AM

Hindu High caste Jaffna Tamils , who makeup the 60% of the Jaffna Tamil population on this planet, are a special breed. They did superbly in Singapore and Malaysia during the British occupation of Malaya , they did superbly in Colombo during British occupation of Sri Lanka, and now they are doing superbly in the Western countries like America, Britain , and Australia . If the Sinhalese and Muslims in Colombo are hostile to this Tamil name change for a road , the Jaffna origin Hindu High Caste Tamils are not bothered at all as they are all doing very well outside Sri Lanka.

Nadarajan Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:47 PM

If it is truly high class Tamils they are not bothered about names of a road. The class shows by the services given to the society where he/she lives. Mr. Arunachalam was a very respected person who served the nation but he may have been bothered to name a road after his name.

VJ Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:44 AM

It should be Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam mawatha.

charlie chaplin Thursday, 18 January 2024 12:55 PM

Cant we have a shorter pet or nickname for him. eg Sir Ponnys Place. or Ponny Aruls Mawatha

Kabir Hashim Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:52 AM

Carlton House should be changed to Modambalam Jarapaksa Mw.

Kishu Gomes Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:53 AM

Go back to the old English names if you want Western tourists (not smugglers from Tamil Nadu)

Rohan Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:57 PM

Please check your family tree and it will show that your ancestors really came from a few generations ago. Tamil Nadu.

RANIL Friday, 19 January 2024 06:53 AM

First of all change your name Kishu?? It's not English name

ERAN Wicks Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:54 AM

Biggest crooks are in CMC and Havelock city.

Kandiah Balendran Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:56 AM

People should just use the old English names (if they can dress like westerners)

Rip Winkle Thursday, 18 January 2024 11:12 AM

I totally agree with Mongol CMC.

Sunil Thursday, 18 January 2024 11:20 AM

Renaming Road is good.Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam fought for our independence as President Ceylon National Congress, father of the University movement who helped establish University of Ceylon, a Cambridge scholar a Civil Servant who was Registrar General, reviewed systems and brought improvements and produced an excellent report on our demographics. He has not been honoured well except a statue at Presidential Secretariat.A small by road is named after him in Horton Place. But look at how T B Jayah, Ananda Coomaraswamy, R G Senanayake and Lester James Pieris have roads named after them. People can continue use Horton place name but let the name be changed.

Eshan Thursday, 18 January 2024 11:42 AM

How much will this cost rate payers and residents? Name boards, opening ceremony tamashas, stationery, letterhead, brochures, business card, name board changes is additional cost over and above the confusion and chaos. How damn stupid. Whose idiotic idea is it?

FORTUNE TELLER Thursday, 18 January 2024 12:42 PM

ANOTHER SIDE TRACK PRIOR TO THE SO CALLED ELECTIONS, TO GET CITIZENS DISTRACTED WHILE WHEELING AND DEALING IS DONE BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. I PREDICT ONE DAY A MOVIE WOULD BE RELEASED " THE RISE AND DOWNFALL OF SRI LANKA" AND WOULD DEFINITELY CIRCULATE WORLDWIDE AND WIN A OSCAR.

ARP Thursday, 18 January 2024 01:07 PM

This will make google lady more confused.

Patcitz Thursday, 18 January 2024 01:26 PM

Ranil's promises working well to provide EELAM to the LTTE TERRORISTS, once again. The hard attempt of elimination the ruthless LTTE terrorist group being reformed

Manel Fonseka Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:00 PM

Mahinda R changed the simple, easy to insert in forms, etc, Havelock Rd, to Sri Sambuddhathva Jayanthi Mawatha (installing the HQ of the BBS on the 5th floor of the new B Cultural Centre). Let alone spell it properly, it's far too long for the space provided for addresses on most forms, etc.

NV Jen Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:04 PM

Bandaranayake started the racist culture that ruined the country since 1950's. He has nothing to do with Katunayake airport yet it is named after him! If that's the case no harm in renaming a road after Sir Pon. Arunachalam, the founding president of Ceylon National congress and was one of the pioneers in the freedom struggle.

Wiraj Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:08 PM

Good to honour those people who have done great things for the country by naming roads or places after them. But do away with the word "MAWATHA". call it a "ROAD" for simplicity sake.

Punchi Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:10 PM

@ Jaffna Hindu High Caste Tamil, I am told that the first ever no white civil servant in British ruled Ceylon was the son of a Point Pedro woman who sold Appam from an opening in the wall of the compound they lived in. Most of the Tamils living overseas are not following the archaic caste conventions of the country of their ancestors

Mahila Friday, 19 January 2024 01:44 AM

Punchi, "Point Pedro woman who sold Appam from an opening in the wall of the compound they lived in." Why through an "opening in the wall"? !!??? Was it because any further 'EXPOSE' would have been "UNPALATABLE"???

Sambo Thursday, 18 January 2024 02:21 PM

You people are even messing up the names of the roads. How many roads have been re named but who is using these name. Don't you have anything to do. Just take a nap.

Thank god I don't have to write XMas cards anymore Thursday, 18 January 2024 03:46 PM

OMG, it will take me an extra hour to write my Christmas cards. Ex Cardinal Thomas Cooray Mawatha could have been called Cooray Mawatha or even Hooray Mawatha !!

Jagath Thursday, 18 January 2024 05:27 PM

How about Gon Mung Handiya

Rajaratnam Thursday, 18 January 2024 05:28 PM

Punchi, you may be referring to K Alvapillai who was member of Ceylon Civil Service and was Permanent Secretary to many ministers J R Jayawardena. Philip Gunawarde.But he was never the first non white or first Tamil Civil Servant. His mother sold gingerly oil.You have to update your knowledge of the past.

Mahila Friday, 19 January 2024 02:00 AM

That makes sense and also of course college mates father, therefore cannot be first Tamil as there were many Tamils before that!!! Selling Hoppers in Jaffna wasn’t that popular means for earning a livelihood, as much as with comparatively, “Jaffna Thosai”!!?? Gingelly Oil was special product and desired!!??? Can definitely affirm that and as Head of trade delegation to Australia in the late 60's advised the Australian Foreign Trade delegation on best practice on currency conversions and Qty of wheat Flour supplies and valuation of AID!!!??? Genius!

DJ Thursday, 18 January 2024 06:23 PM

Make the streets clean and put some order first. You have nothing else to do than change names

Zee Thursday, 18 January 2024 09:54 PM

If you have nothing to do, come to Colombo MC and do it. Lankans suffer from various mental sicknesses. This is one. These changes cause great problems for the public and the residents.

Kumara Ilangasinghe Thursday, 18 January 2024 10:31 PM

Havelock Road Colombo 6 end was done up beautifully with a dual carriageway over 2 years ago but the Street lights are never switched on. We too pay high taxes to the CMC but only Colombo 7 Street lights are switched on. Why the discrimination?? "Api Kaludha"??

Ruwan Friday, 19 January 2024 02:34 AM

Would it not be better if they developed or built the many unknown roads and name them as they choose rather than naming a road that was was already built (mostly likely by people who had vision) and has historic value of where we were and aspire to be again.

Diensh Friday, 19 January 2024 08:03 AM

shameless political gimmicks to get Tamil votes.

Sambo Friday, 19 January 2024 08:13 AM

By making such decisions they think they are doing a might job. all life they sit and heat their bums and suddenly come out with a stupid decision as this. Tell me who is using the names that as already be changed. Only the name boards.

Percy Wijenayake Friday, 19 January 2024 09:11 AM

Bring in legislation to stop this stupidity of renaming roads.

DOT Friday, 19 January 2024 11:57 AM

Excellent ! Otherwise we mix up ! Going to Horten Plance with this! What a relief !

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Horton Place to be renamed as Ponnamabalam Arunachalam Mawatha

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