Browsing by Author "Gunawardana, A"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5

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Community-based evacuation routes for hydrometeorological hazards resilience: a case study of Ratnapura district in Sri Lanka
(Business Research Unit (BRU), 2023-12-04) Cooray, MSS; Bandara, AANS; Perera, AAH; Lankeshwarie, ABD; Dassanayake, SM; Gunawardana, A; Prasanna, R
Sri Lanka has endured many hydrometeorological hazards due to torrential rains and monsoonal rains. These events disrupt communication networks, obstruct roadways, and can result in resource misallocation. Thus, setting in place mechanisms that could enhance situational awareness is essential and beneficial in building resilience in disaster management. This study aims to minimize the loss of lives and improve living conditions for the displaced by strategically allocating resources. Our approach involves the development of a decision management system. This system serves the dual purpose of guiding civilians to the nearest evacuation shelter and aiding stakeholders, including local authorities and Red Cross volunteers, in coordinating rescue operations and resource distribution. The research employs a multi-phase methodology, the research conducts susceptibility analysis to identify flood-prone areas based on terrain, land use, and soil data. Leveraging Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite imagery, the inundation mapping phase assesses the flooding extent in Rathnapura, the selected study region. These maps are instrumental in optimizing evacuation routes and ensuring the secure movement of affected populations during flood events. The resulting flood risk map integrates with the system to generate the nearest evacuation route. This enables users to circumvent flooded areas inaccessible by land vehicles, ultimately saving crucial time in emergency situations. The data pertaining to the relocation of civilians to these evacuation shelters can be used by authorities to appropriately allocate food, water, medical supplies, and dry rations, and the route suggestion engine can be used in rescuing civilians stranded in their homes during floods. The Decision Management System in question was developed as a web application, which is currently being deployed on a local server with improvements underway to best serve the public and authorities.
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Detecting possible outliers in the Colombo stock exchange
(Business Research Unit (BRU), 2023-12-04) Bandaranayake, BMEP; Perera, MKPL; Lakmini, WR; Nageswaran, N; Perera, SD; Gunawardana, A; Perera, NA
Insider trading poses a significant challenge for stock markets, including the Colombo Stock Exchange, as it undermines investor confidence. The purpose of this study is to develop an innovative methodology that can effectively identify and flag suspicious transactions and investors. The proposed approach considers a multitude of parameters that influence the behavior of insider traders, which have been overlooked in current detection methods. This method mainly focuses on assessing the change in the trading behavior of investors in relation to price-sensitive corporate events compared to their past behavior and the behavior of peer investors. As an initiation, we used trade data for the year 2016- 2021 and identified potential suspicious investors and transactions. By utilizing this approach, we seek to enhance the effectiveness of identifying insider trading and mitigate its adverse effects on the market.
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Empirical study of covid-19’s influence on travel behavior in Sri Lanka
(Sri Lanka Society of Transport and Logistics, 2021-10) Jayasinghe, A; Gunawardana, A; Gunaruwan, TL
The objective of this study is to explore the impact of COVID-19 on travel behavior (TB) including mode choice, travel frequency and travel distance) in Sri Lanka (SL). Further, the study investigates changes in TB in terms of socio-economic characteristics of travelers. The data were collected from online surveys (N=496). Descriptive statistics, boxplot charts, Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) were applied to analysis. The study found a remarkable reduction in travel frequency, distance, and public transport mode share during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, results indicated that social-economic factors such as age, income, vehicle ownership, and type of job significantly influenced those changes. Furthermore, results indicated that travel behavior changes due to COVID-19 have been significantly influenced by socio-economic characteristics of travelers and their level of protection motivation in three stages of the pandemic first wave (Before March 2020), after first wave (March-May, May-September) and second wave (September-Today onwards). The findings of this study will make a significant contribution to the transport planning and management in general, and especially in SL, during the pandemic and/or new‐normal situation. The key findings of the study can be incorporated to solve. possible transport concerns in a new‐normal situation and any future pandemic situation.
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Evaluating the effectiveness of online learning and teaching: a study focused on undergraduates at the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
(Business Research Unit (BRU), 2024) Dassanayake, B; Gunawardana, A; de Silva, TS
The COVID-19 pandemic led to an unprecedented shift from traditional classroom settings to online learning environments worldwide. This transition emphasized the importance of online learning not only as a response to emergencies but as a crucial mode of education that could shape the future of learning. Online platforms offer opportunities for flexibility, accessibility, and personalized learning experiences, making them increasingly relevant in modern education. However, this rapid transition, particularly in developing countries like Sri Lanka, posed significant challenges and raised critical questions regarding the effectiveness of online education. This study focuses on the University of Moratuwa (UOM), one of Sri Lanka's leading technical universities, and seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of online learning both during the pandemic and in the broader context of ongoing online educational practices. The study primarily aims to assess student engagement, learning outcomes, and the challenges encountered by students during this period. The sudden switch to online learning in Sri Lanka highlighted both the resilience and the challenges of the educational system. Unlike courses initially designed for online platforms, the rapid adaptation of face-to-face courses to virtual environments presented a steep learning curve for both students and educators. The need for a sustainable online learning framework became evident, as this shift revealed underlying issues like technological barriers, student isolation, and the complexity of fostering engagement in a virtual space. This study addresses the research gap by analyzing the experiences within a developing country context, offering insights that are crucial for improving online education globally while proposing strategies for its effective integration into future educational models.
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Flood risk assessment in the vulnerable economic zones: a case study in the Kelani river basin
(Business Research Unit (BRU), 2023-12-04) Jayasinghe, SN; Madurasinghe, MAVN; Weerahannedige, DC; Weerakoon, DRYYB; Dassanayake, SM; Gunawardana, A; Dissanayake, DMPV; Prasanna, R
This research presents a comprehensive framework for managing flood risk in the Kelani River basin, employing the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and spatial analysis to enhance flood risk comprehension, support informed decision-making, and facilitate effective flood management. Initially, the framework identifies key parameters influencing flood risk, which are then used to create flood hazard and vulnerability indexes through AHP. The hazard index indicates the likelihood of a flood event, while the vulnerability index assesses potential impacts. These two indexes are combined to form an overall flood risk index. Subsequently, this index is utilized to develop a web-based spatial decision support system (SDSS), enabling businesses and stakeholders to visualize and analyze flood risk information, aiding them in making well-informed decisions regarding flood mitigation and adaptation measures. This research offers valuable insights for policymakers and authorities in the Kelani River basin, fostering resilience and sustainable development in the region. Though the study acknowledges limitations related to data availability and generalization to other regions, it serves as a valuable foundation for the development of more comprehensive and effective flood risk management frameworks in the Kelani River basin and beyond.