Khan Clock Tower

Khan Clock Tower Khan Clock Tower Khan Clock Tower

As you enter the City of Colombo from the Colombo Harbour, the first thing you would encounter is the sprawling Pettah Market. Filled with all the bright colors, noise, bustle, and pungent smells; the market is the biggest and busiest market on the island. All the goods that are brought in from the ships pass through the market, and as a result, you can find almost anything and everything here.

Guarding the entrance to this industrious zone is a century-old clock tower known as the Khan Clock Tower. The tower was built in the early 20th century by a Parsi family of the name Khan.

The Parsis were essentially Persians who had migrated to India around the 7th century AD for fear of religious discrimination when the Arabs invaded what is now Iran. Many settled in Gujarat. Their older roots segregated them from the modern Zoroastrian Indian community of Iranis who only arrived in the 19th and 20th century. The Parsis were often traders and had business interests in the nearby communities.

The Khan family were a particularly illustrious Parsi family who had many trade interests in Ceylon, as Sri Lanka was then called. They owned many large businesses, including the Colombo Oil Mills, which was quite famous at the time for producing many varieties of high quality oil.

In 1878, the patriarch of the family – Framjee Bhikhajee Khan – passed away leaving his two sons to take over the family’s trade. They successfully grew their businesses achieving fame and fortune over the next several decades. But they never forgot their father, who taught them so much and made them who they were.

In the year of 1923, they built a clock tower and fountain in his memory, close to where he loved to work. On the base of the clocktower an inscribed plate was attached. It said: "This clock tower and fountain was erected to the memory of Framjee Bhikhajee Khan by his sons Bhikhajee and Munchershaw Framjee Khan as a token of affectionate gratitude and dedicated through the Municipal Council to the citizens of Colombo on the fourth day of January 1923, the 45th anniversary of his death.”

The four-story tall tower remains there to this day on a landscaped roundabout. The water fountain that’s attached to it has long stopped working. But clock tower continues to function. A rock solid memorial to the love and affection of family.

Khan Clock Tower Khan Clock Tower Khan Clock Tower
【LK94009831: Khan Clock Tower. Images by Google, copyright(s) reserved by original authors.】

About Colombo District

Colombo is the largest city and commercial capital of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte, the capital city of Sri Lanka. Colombo is a busy and vibrant city with a mixture of modern life and colonial buildings and ruins and a city population of 647,100.The Colombo Metropolitan Region, defined by the districts of Colombo, Gampaha and Kalutara, has an estimated population of 5,648,000, and covers an area of 3,694.20 km²

Colombo is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural city. It is the most populous city in Sri Lanka, with 642,163 people living within the city limits. The population of Colombo is a mix of numerous ethnic groups, mainly Sinhalese, Moors and Tamils. There are also small communities of people with Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch, Malay and Indian origins living in the city, as well as numerous European expatriates.

The great majority of Sri Lankan corporations have their head offices in Colombo. Some of the industries include chemicals, textiles, glass, cement, leather goods, furniture, and jewellery. In the city center is located South Asia's second tallest building - The World Trade Centre.

About Western Province

The Western Province is the most densely populated province of Sri Lanka. It is home to the legislative capital Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte as well to Colombo, the nation's administrative and business center. Western Province is divided into 3 main districts called Colombo (642 km²), Gampaha (1,386.6 km²) and Kalutara (1,606 km²) districts. As Sri Lanka's economic hub, all the major local and international corporations have their presence in the city and so do all the major designer and high street retailers, so be ready to indulge in some retail therapy in western province.

Having the highest population in the all the provinces, the almost all the premier educational institutions in the island are located in western province. Universities in the province include the University of Colombo, the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, University of Kelaniya, Open University, Sri Lanka, Buddhist and Pali University of Sri Lanka, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University and University of Moratuwa .Western province has the largest amount of schools in the country, which includes National, Provincial, Private and International schools.