A pioneer academic, he was a man with a mission
It was with deep sorrow that I looked at the serene man now lying peacefully in a coffin. He was a colossus among the academics and he walked along the corridors of the sprawling Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya with a characteristic and purposeful stride that inspired confidence in everybody who came across him.
Emeritus Professor S. Mahalingam passed away in Alakollai, Alaveddy in Jaffna on November 3, 2015, at the age of 89, far away from his beloved Peradeniya and Kandy. He would have been 90 on January 16, 2016.
A wave of spontaneous sorrow swept across hundreds of engineers here and abroad for whom he was their mentor, teacher and guide.
Born on January 16, 1926 in Jaffna, he was the eldest in a family of eight. He later moved to Malaya along with his family and had his primary and secondary education at Maxwell School and Victoria College in Kuala Lumpur.
Selvadurai Mahalingam left Malaya in 1946 to follow a degree course in engineering at the then Ceylon Technical College in Colombo.
Ironically, according to him, Ceylonese parents in Malaya at that time wanted their children to be educated in Ceylon as there were better educational facilities and colleges teaching professional courses.
Contrary to popular belief, he qualified as a civil engineer in 1950, having obtained a B.Sc. Eng. First class honours degree from the University of London as an external candidate.
He was placed first among the candidates from Ceylon. He joined the newly established Faculty of Engineering, University of Ceylon, in 1952, as an Assistant Lecturer.
It was the late Professor E. O. E. Pereira who was then the Dean who persuaded him to switch over to Mechanical Engineering. Consequently, he proceeded to University of Sheffield for his PhD and completed it in 1956, specializing in torsional vibration.
He returned to the University of Ceylon in the same year and was promoted to a lecturer’s position. He published extensively, in reputed refereed journals, on topics related to his field of expertise.
In recognition of his contribution, he was awarded the Doctor of Science in Engineering (DSc Eng) by the University of London – the first Sri Lankan Engineer to get this prestigious award. Dr. Mahalingam became the Professor of Mechanical Engineering in 1970 and retired in 1991.
Grateful students organised a felicitation ceremony, the first of its kind in the history of the Engineering Faculty, to a packed house at the E.O.E. Pereira theatre.
One incident that still lingers in the minds of the engineers, who were present that day, was how the late Dr. B.M.A. Balasuriya, after making his speech, said that he wanted to show his respect to his teacher and went on his knees before Professor Mahalingam, touched his feet and worshipped him.
It was an unforgettable moment and practically everybody present was in tears. Needless to say, that the others also followed suit.
Professor Mahalingam married Devaki who predeceased him in 2014. She was a tower of strength to him and we could see how he was devastated after her death.
An embodiment of simplicity and purpose, he was a man with a mission. Students’ welfare and teaching were more important to him than personal benefits and comforts. Material benefits were not a priority to him.
During the disastrous 1983 riots, his wife and he were compelled to move next door, to the Hilda Obeysekera Hall, for security. This was an unforgettable but a very sad situation for them.
When I rushed there with my wife, to look into their welfare at that time, he narrated the sorry state of affairs at the Hilda Obeysekera Hall and how he had to join a queue with others to use the wash room and toilets which brought tears to our eyes.
But still, the greener pastures were not for him. Many are unaware how grateful we should be to have had him amidst us through all these upheavals.
When the country was experiencing the pangs of a closed economy, in the sixties and early seventies, where everything was in short supply, Professor Mahalingam embarked on a unique journey.
That was to develop the Applied Mechanics Laboratory from scratch, which is a standing monument to his commitment. Now, named after him, it stands as a showpiece that attracts large crowds on every public occasion.
The unpretentious person he was, when the senior engineers requested the Dean to name the laboratory after him, on the day of the felicitation ceremony, he flatly refused and said such things should not be done when the person was still serving in an institution. Such were his principles and discipline that he practised by word and deed.
Although he looked very stern and hard, those who were close to him knew how compassionate and witty he was. I think the exterior was due to the self-discipline he maintained.
Many a time he confessed that he could not understand why students did not come to him and ask for advice regarding the subject matter. As he was a strict disciplinarian, and especially on course work, deadlines were kept without extensions, and students feared and respected his instructions.
In spite of this, Professor Mahalingam was a jovial person full of humour amongst friends. He had many anecdotes and jokes, and the ability to relate even the simplest, much heard of, stories with a unique style of delivery and well timed punchline to raise laughter.
He could narrate even the jokes bordering on adult content with a deadpan face.
I particularly remember an incident, in my final year, at the drawing office. I felt somebody standing behind me. When I looked up it was Professor Mahalingam and I was so nervous I just stopped whatever I was doing.
He, with his characteristic delivery, said “it’s good to read outside the subject. Professor Tuplin is a friend of mine. His views are well known but not shared by many”. He then walked away abruptly and I was stunned.
He, of course, was referring to a coursework I had submitted on Holzer analysis of torsional vibration. Professor Tuplin, also, was an expert on vibration but did not favour Holzer’s analysis, and I also criticized and mentioned this in my discussion in the coursework.
It so happened that I had read about this in a book in the library. Naturally, I expected the worst and a request for a resubmission but, he had written ‘good’ to my utter surprise.
Of course, at that time I did not know that Professor Mahalingam was closely associated with Holzer analysis and in fact had modified the prevailing theory. Professor S. Mahalingam’s name is quoted in the well-known text book, ‘Mechanics of Vibration’ by Professors R. E. D. Bishop and R. C. Johnson, in recognition of his modification to the Holzer analysis.
Incidentally, both of them were his friends and he co-authored several papers on vibrations with Professor R. E. D. Bishop.
Professor Mahalingam shunned publicity, did not accept positions, accolades or titles for which he maintained he was not qualified. When the University of Peradeniya offered to confer D.Sc. (Honoris Causa), he politely refused and said he had one earned doctorate and that was enough.
Many myths are generally woven around great men, these may be an indication of their greatness. Isaac Newton and Einstein had theories attributed to them which had very little to do with them.
Professor Mahalingam was not an exception. There were many stories about how he had solved vibration problems in Rolls Royce gas turbines.
One such story being circulated even now, after his death, is how he had detected a defect in an Avro jet engine, and in lieu of compensation that he refused, Rolls Royce gifted a sectioned jet engine.
I asked him about this, several years ago, and he laughed it off in his typical unassuming manner. He said, he just wrote to Rolls Royce explaining what he was doing at the Applied Mechanics laboratory and asked whether they had any discarded engines or equipment which could be used for teaching purposes.
They responded by saying there was a sectioned jet engine, used for a training programme, which has no use for them now and they would be pleased to donate it to the faculty provided the freight was arranged.
The University agreed to bear the cost of freight, and this engine now proudly adorns the lobby of the Faculty of Engineering, Peradeniya. A fitting display for an Engineering Faculty.
Professor Mahalingam firmly believed in a knowledge-based education with emphasis on practical application. This was the reason why he created this unique space, now known as Professor Mahalingam Laboratory, at the Faculty of Engineering, Peradeniya.
This laboratory, then known as the Applied Mechanics Laboratory, is the main attraction to visitors to the faculty, be they local or foreign. Perhaps, this home-made laboratory is the only one of its kind in the world. Created with minimal cost, it is a veritable resource centre for all mechanical engineering students.
It guides you through displays of sectioned engines to industrial applications of mechanical engineering with meticulously designed and fabricated products with superior finishes that conceal the scrap material used in them.
It also demonstrates what can be achieved, with available resources, rather than waiting for foreign funds and advice.
He was not without critics.
There were many who found fault with him for not initiating post graduate studies in his field of specialization. His answer to that was, he did not believe in half-baked products. He bemoaned the fact that the university did not have sufficient funds to get down textbooks and journals of repute.
“How can I produce post graduates under such circumstances?” he asked, quite rightly, too.
He was the last of the pioneering academics who launched the first Faculty of Engineering in Sri Lanka. Professor Mahalingam was a teacher and gentleman par excellence worthy of emulation.
-Newton Wickramasuriya
| With his brilliance and simplicity he touched the lives of many I was sad to hear of the passing away of Professor Mahalingam on November 3, in Jaffna, after a brief illness. He was the last surviving member of the pioneers of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya, which was established in July 1950, as a part of the then University of Ceylon. Maha, as he was affectionately called by his students and friends, was one of the most respected academics at the University of Peradeniya. He was a great teacher, much loved by all his students, and brilliant researcher of international fame. He touched the lives of everyone he encountered all over the world. Selvadurai Mahalingam had his secondary education in Malaya, and came to Ceylon in 1946 to obtain his university degree, as there was no university in Malaya at that time. At that time Ceylon had a university, but no Faculty of Engineering offering engineering degrees. So he joined the Ceylon Technical College, Colombo, followed a degree course in engineering, and registered for an external degree of the University of London. After obtaining his B.Sc. Eng. (first class) degree from the University of London, he joined the staff of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Ceylon, at its inception in July 1950 as an Assistant Lecturer. He was one out of 12 academic staff of the Faculty of Engineering, under the capable leadership of the founder Dean, Prof. E.O.E. Pereira. At that time the Department of Mechanical Engineering had only two academic staff members, none with post-graduate qualifications. So Prof. Pereira wanted Maha to do graduate work in Mechanical Engineering, even though his London degree was in Civil Engineering. He proceeded to the UK to do research at the University of Sheffield, and got his Ph.D. degree in 1956, working in the area of mechanical vibrations. He also did some practical work on vibrations with Rolls Royce, and returned to Ceylon to become a Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering. While shouldering a heavy teaching load, he also did pioneering research in mechanical vibrations, and established a research culture at the Faculty. His seminal paper in the prestigious Journal of Applied Mechanics on the Holzer Method of Balancing in Vibration Control was highly acclaimed. Later in association with Prof. R.E.D. Bishop at the University of London, he produced a series of papers of the highest international standard. He did most of his research work while working at the Faculty of Engineering, and his work has been quoted in textbooks and journals. I was fortunate to study under him, and also later to be closely associated with him as a colleague. As students we respected him very much; his lectures were clear, precise, and thought provoking. His use of the blackboard was an example for others to follow, and whenever we approached him for clarification, the answers he gave showed that he was a master of the subject. Under the guidance of academic staff like Maha, the Faculty produced brilliant engineering graduates many of whom have had successful careers in Sri Lanka and abroad. They rose to the highest positions in the profession and in academia in their adopted countries, and their success has been a source of pride to the Faculty. At the Faculty, we consulted him often for his advice on various matters, and his opinions were always valued and helpful. During the period I was Dean of the Faculty, I got him to produce a series of publications, the most important being the History of the Faculty of Engineering. This classic work which covered the origins and the early period of the Faculty, was the first such document to be produced by any university in Sri Lanka, and it is still being referred by anyone writing such a document. He also edited several important Faculty documents, including the Research in Engineering in 1970, and Memories of an Engineering Faculty in 2000, the latter for the Golden Jubilee of the Faculty. For his research contributions, the University of London conferred him the D.Sc. in Engineering. That was the first earned engineering D.Sc. by any Sri Lankan, and it still remains the only such degree obtained by any Sri Lankan on research done while in Sri Lanka. Because of this unique honour, the University of Ceylon created a personal chair in Applied Mechanics for him; the first such position created at the University, because until that time the only chairs available were cadre chairs. During the 70s the university was short of funds for buildings, and Maha started the construction of the Applied Mechanics Lab, virtually using petty cash. The normal practice then was to give the design and construction of buildings to outside contractors as the university only had a Maintenance Department for routine maintenance and supervision of building construction. So Maha’s was a novel idea, which produced what was later called a “petty-cash building”. We did the structural designs at the Faculty, purchased building materials, hired direct labour, and supervised building construction. This saved much funds to the university and it got a quality product. Maha also got the Faculty Workshops to make various mechanical equipment and demonstration models for teaching, without buying them from outside. His Applied Mechanics Lab became the showpiece of the Faculty, and a ‘must visit’ place for any visitor. It can still compete with any such lab in Sri Lanka or abroad. He also got some sectioned models of complicated machinery from outside using his contacts, and one such model – the jet engine he got from Rolls Royce – is the symbol of the Faculty of Engineering now. Even though he was a researcher of highest international standards, Maha was a very simple and humble person. He avoided the limelight, and wanted to devote all his time to teaching and research. He never wanted to be the Head of the Department or Dean of the Faculty, even though he was often the first choice for those positions. When the Government of Sri Lanka awarded the title VidyaJyothi to him in 2005, he was not very enthusiastic about it. Professor Mahalingam retired from the Faculty in 1991, after continuously serving it for over 40 years, but continued to teach for several years after retirement. In appreciation of his long, dedicated and outstanding service to the Faculty of Engineering and the University, the University of Peradeniya conferred him the title of Professor Emeritus, and in 2007, the Peradeniya Engineering Faculty Alumni Association (PEFAA) felicitated him. He will be deeply missed. - Munidasa P. Ranaweera |
