Tissa Vitharana
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Honourable Tissa Vitharana MP |
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|---|---|
| Minister of Science and Technology | |
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In office April 2004 – April 2010 |
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| Minister of Technology and Research | |
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In office May 2010 – November 2010 |
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| Succeeded by | Pavithra Devi Wanniarachchi |
| Senior Minister of Scientific Affairs | |
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In office November 2010 – 12 January 2015 |
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| Member of the Sri Lankan Parliament for National List |
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In office 2004–2015 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
30 August 1934 Nuwara Eliya, Ceylon |
| Political party | Lanka Sama Samaja Party |
| Other political affiliations |
United People's Freedom Alliance |
| Alma mater |
University of Ceylon University of London |
| Occupation | Physician |
| Religion | Buddhist |
| Ethnicity | Sinhalese |
Upali Tissa Vitharana (born 30 August 1934) is a Sri Lankan physician, politician, former Member of Parliament and former cabinet minister. He is the current leader of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), a member of the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA).
Vitharana was born 30 August 1934 in Nuwara Eliya in central Ceylon. He was the son of Pieris Vitharana, a Public Works Department engineer, and N. P. Maggie Perera, sister of N. M. Perera. He was educated at Trinity College, Kandy and Ananda College, Colombo. He played cricket for both schools. After school he joined the University of Ceylon's medical faculty in Colombo, graduating in 1959 with a MBBS degree. Vitharana captained the university's cricket team in 1957/58 and took part in the Sara Trophy Tournament.
Vitharana is married to Kamini Meedeniya. They have a son, Ranil.
After university Vitharana worked as a medical officer (1959-67) and was registrar at Colombo General Hospital in 1963/64. His post graduate work earned him a MD degree in clinical medicine from the University of Ceylon in 1965. He then went to study in the UK, obtaining a Diploma in Bacteriology from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in 1968 and a Ph.D. in virology from the University of London in 1971. Specialising in bacteriology and virology, Vitharana joined the Medical Research Institute (MRI) in Colombo in 1972, serving as its director from 1983 to 1994. He was head of the virology department at the MRI from 1972 to 1994. Vitharana was a consultant virologist at the Edinburgh City Hospital's Regional Virus Laboratory in the 1980s. He was deputy director of the Victoria Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory in Melbourne from 1991 to 1993.
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