National Telecommunications Museum opens for public

Saturday, 21 May 2016 00:28 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), the leading ICT solutions provider in the country inaugurated a novel national telecommunication museum at the company’s premises in Padukka on 17 May, to coincide with the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day.

The museum will showcase telecommunications equipment dating back from the British era up to today, taking the visitors through a journey of the transformations that occurred in Sri Lanka’s telecommunications industry. The museum is now open for public viewing and promises to provide an unforgettable experience to visitors.

SLT Chairman P.G. Kumarasinghe Sirisena in the presence of Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Modern Technology Director General and CEO Sanath Panawennage, declared the National Telecommunications Museum open. Colombo National Museum Assistant Director Lankani Somaratne as well as other SLT officials were also present at the opening ceremony.

The main vision behind this museum is to preserve the heritage and legacy of the country’s telecommunications industry and to share this treasure and national asset with the rest of the country. The museum will project all the eras in the history of telecommunication in Sri Lanka as per the timeline of development of the industry in the country to reflect milestones on a socio-economic-technological basis.

It will feature the antique equipment used in the telecommunication industry from the British era up to the smart phones used in today’s modern world, enabling people to experience not only the old, antique equipment that were used in the olden days but also futuristic technologies as well. The lay out of equipment according to their respective time periods, along with the picture gallery and layout, will literally take visitors through a journey of the evolution and transformation of the telecommunications industry in Sri Lanka that spans over 150 years.

This telecommunications museum is also an endeavour by SLT to support the tourism industry, as the company believes that this will be an attractive location for tourists visiting Sri Lanka in the near future. The National Telecommunications Museum has been designed carefully, to reflect world museums while at the same time, depicting modern architecture.

“This is a national asset which does not belong to Sri Lanka Telecom but to the entire country,” said SLT Chairman P.G. Kumarasinghe Sirisena. “All other telcos and all the citizens of Sri Lanka can learn a lot from the new National Telecommunications Museum, which is why we have opened it to the general public to make sure that this rich heritage and knowledge pool of the country is freely available for all.”

The museum is located at the SLT’s former Satellite Earth Station site at Padukka, which was first commissioned in December 1975, during former Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s time period. This was the very first satellite earth station built in Sri Lanka, with access to the INTELSAT IOR 60 degree satellite.

The company’s website for the National Telecommunications Museum was also officially launched on the same day. Furthermore, all those interested are able to go on a virtual tour of the National Telecommunications Museum, by visiting SLT’s website www.slt.lk.