The prestigious Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Directors (CVCD) has been presenting the CVCD Excellence Awards every two years since 2006. These awards recognize outstanding contributions in research and innovation across eight subject areas, under the categories of Most Outstanding Senior Researcher, Most Outstanding Young Researcher, and Most Outstanding Innovator.

With three awards in 2024, the University of Kelaniya earned the highest number of CVCD Excellence Awards among all universities. This prestigious award is considered the highest recognition a university lecturer can receive in their academic career in Sri Lanka.

During the ceremony, Senior Professor Chamaru De Alwis, of the Department of Human Resource Management, Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies, was recognized as the Most Outstanding Senior Researcher in Management Studies, while Dr. Chiran Jayasundara, the Librarian of the University of Kelaniya, received the award for the Most Outstanding Senior Researcher in Social Sciences and Legal Studies. Moreover, Dr. A. K. A. B. Baminiwatta of the Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, who is currently overseas, was honoured as the Most Outstanding Young Researcher in Medical and Dental Sciences, during the event.

Dr. Chiran Jayasundara’s recognition is particularly significant, marking a landmark achievement for the field of Library and Information Science in Sri Lanka. In appreciation of this rare distinction, a felicitation ceremony was held on August 14, 2025, at the Main Library Premises under the patronage of Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya. The event aimed to formally acknowledge and celebrate Dr. Jayasundara’s contribution and was organized by the Library staff. The event was also graced by Senior Professor Chamaru De Alwis, one of the other two CVCD awardees from the university.

Dignitaries in attendance included Senior Professor Sunanda Madduma Bandara, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya; Ven. Senior Professor Induragare Dhammarathana Thero, Department of Sanskrit and Eastern Studies, along with other venerable theros; Dr. Pradeepa Wijethunga, President of the University Librarians Association of Sri Lanka, and Executive Committee members; Mr. K. K. K. Dharmathilaka, Registrar of the University; and academic and non-academic staff members.