Tribute to Deivanayagam Eassuwaren, a gentleman par excellence

The late Eassuwaren (Left)  receiving a felicitation award from Speaker Karu Jayasuriya (Middle) in the presence of National Chamber of Commerce President Sujeeve Samaraweera (Right) in May 2017

It is with profound sorrow that the National Chamber of Commerce records the demise of one of its well-respected past Presidents, Deshabandu Deivanayagam Eassuwaren.

He is held in very high esteem by the chamber for his yeoman service in his term to the chamber and to the public at large.

During his tenure, he brought up the concept of conducting the Ayurveda Expo by the chamber; it is continued to date by the chamber.

Affable, gentle, kind and charming, the late Eassuwaren leaves a mark of that genre of gentlemen of a past era, leaving a trail for others to follow. He was a genial head of his organisation and never admonished his subordinates for any misdemeanour but advised them gently as to their requirement.

He was a well-respected and recognised business leader in the business community and headed a premier tea export company - Eswaran Brothers - founded by his father V.T.V. Deivanayagam.

Eswaran Brothers established its humble beginnings in 1964 with its first export of 300 chests of tea to Somalia.

He received many accolades in his lifetime including the prestigious ‘Deshabandu’ National Honour Award from President Maithripala Sirisena only last year. He held many important posts - former Honorary Consul of the Republic of Mauritius, Trustee of the Varatharaja Vinayaga Temple, former President of the Kanban Kalagam Literary Association, Trustee of the Manitha Neyam Trust, among many others. 

He was also a philanthropist, providing facilities to less privileged schools.

A special significant quality in Eassuwaren was that, being a devout  Hindu, he generously contributed  to the Buddhist community and culture at large, including the construction of the 70 feet tall Samadhi Buddha statue in Rambadagalla, which is a famous landmark today and to many other Buddhist institutions and  other causes of  the needy. The large gathering of Buddhist clergy from various temples, chanting and partaking at the last rituals, was a testimony of his harmony with the Sinhala Buddhists.

National Chamber of Commerce pays solemn tribute to its dear departed president, Deshabandu Deivanayagam Eassuwaren and pays silent homage to his memory.