Nimalasiri Silva was a Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

n diplomat

Diplomat

A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...

 and civil servant, who was instrumental in establishing the Tourism industry in Si Lanka. He served as Chairman of the Ceylon Hotels Corporation, Director-General, Ceylon Tourist Board and was the Chief of Protocol of the Ministry of External Affairs and Defence

Ministry of External Affairs and Defence

The Ministry of External Affairs and Defence was a ministry of the Government of Ceylon that conducted and managed all of Ceylon's relations with other countries and its military matters from 1947 to 1977.-History:...

 of Ceylon.

Education

Silva was educated at the prestigious Royal College Colombo before his family relocated due to world war 2, he completed his schooling at St. Joseph's College, Colombo

St. Joseph's College, Colombo

St. Joseph's College is a Catholic educational institution in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was established in 1896 by French missionaries, with Rev Christopher Ernst Bonjean playing a leading role. The college has over 4000 students with a staff of over 200...

. He then pursued higher studies at the University of Ceylon

University of Ceylon

The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the University of Sri Lanka which existed from 1973 to 1978. In 1978 it was...

 graduating with BA

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 in History and was the President of the Student Christian Movement. Later he would postgraduate study at Keble College, Oxford

Keble College, Oxford

Keble College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the University Museum and the University Parks. The college is bordered to the north by Keble Road, to the south by Museum Road, and to the west by Blackhall...

 in the field of international affairs.

Diplomatic career

After a brief period of teaching at St. Joseph's College, he was selected to the first batch of carders for the Ceylon Overseas Service in 1949 at its inception. His first overseas assignment was as Second Secretary to the Ceylon's Embassy in Washington DC. He went on to serve as Chief of Protocol of the Ministry of External Affairs until he was seconded to the newly established Ceylon Tourist Board under the then Minister of State, J.R. Jayewardene.

Tourism

Deciding to leave his diplomatic career, he began to work to develop to Tourism industry in Ceylon, he was appointed the Director-General of the Ceylon Tourist Board and played major role in its establishment. Thereafter he was offered the post of General Manager of the Ceylon Hotels Corporation going no to become its Chairman.

Apron taking an early retirement he was an active member of Sri Lanka-India Society, South Africa-Sri Lanka Friendship Society, Cultural Revival Trust, Kataragama Devotees Trust Institute of Sinhala Culture and several Buddhist Associations. He was also a visiting lecturer at the Kotelawala Defence Academy.