Postmaster General Ceylon Maurice Salvador Sreshta

Third son of Dewan Bahadur Aleixo Pinto. Adopted the surname Sreshta from a Nepalese word meaning 'great'. One of the outstanding Mangaloreans fo the first half of the 20th century. Educated at St Joseph's College, Trichinopoly, and thereafter at Presidency College, Madras, he proceeded to England and successfully competed for the Civil Service, opting to work in Ceylon. Positions held include: Commissioner of Requests, Colombo (1907); Acting District Judge, Jaffna (1911); District Judge, Kurunegala (1920) and Registrar General. Culminated his career with the appointment of Postmaster General, Ceylon, in 1923, the first non-European to attain this position. During his office (1923-28), he reorganized the postal system, established the first rural telephone exchange, and motorized the mail services thereby expediting the conveyance of mail all over the country. Returned to Mangalore following retirement, where he was elected Vice Chairman of the Mangalore Municipality (1929), and Member of the Legislative Council, Madras (1932). He was an active member of various Catholic bodies. And for serveral years he was editor of the community magazine Mangalore.