Aiming to build a vibrant scientific and technological community in the country, the National Research Council has designed and implemented the NRC President’s Awards since 1999. It recognizes a distinguished piece of Sri Lankan research and bestowing awards from the President of Sri Lanka, as a national honor to efforts of our scientists. This felicitates the authors and inventors of publications and patents of years 2019 and 2020.

The President’s Awards for Scientific Research (PASR) for publication years 2019 and 2020 was held on the 21st November 2023 at the Sirimavo Bandaranaike Memorial Exposition Centre of the BMICH, Colombo 07.

Eng.(Dr.) Asiri Karunawardena, the Director General of the National Building Research Organisation and Mr. R. M. S., Bandara, Project Director, RLVMMP and Mr. H. D. S. Premasiri, Director, Environmental Studies and Services Division received President’s Awards for three separate Scientific publications for years 2019 and 2020, organized by the National Research Council (NRC).

The awards were presented for following research publications:

1. Khang Dang, Kyoji Sassa, Kazuo Konagai, Asiri Karunawardena, R. M. S. Bandara, Kiyoharu Hirota, Qinwen Tan, Nguyen Duc Ha (2019), Recent rainfall-induced rapid and long-travelling landslide on 17 May 2016 in Aranayaka, Kegalle District, Sri Lanka Landslides, Vol 16,pp 155-164.

2. Qinwen Tan, Kyoji Sassa, Khang Dang, Kazuo Konagai, Asiri Karunawardena, R. M. S. Bandara, Huiming Tang, Go Sato (2020) Estimation of the past and future landslide hazards in the neighboring slopes in the 2016 Aranayake Landslide, Sri Lanka Landslides, Vol 17, pp 1727-17383.

3. Mahesh Jayaweera, Buddhika Gunawardana, Manju Gunawardana, Asiri Karunawardena, Viraj Dias, Sarath Premasiri, Janith Dissanayake, Jagath Manatunge, Nimal Wijeratne, Dhananjith Karunarathne, Saman Thilakasiri (2019) Management of municipal solid waste open dumps immediately after the collapse: An integrated approach from Meethotamulla open dump, Sri Lanka Waste management, Vol 95, pp 227-240.