De Silva was educated at
Nalanda College, Colombo before he proceeded to the
University of Peradeniya where he obtained a bachelor's degree in
Agricultural science. He later obtained a master's degree in Agricultural engineering from
Asian Institute of Technology,
Thailand before he received a postgraduate certificate in
Water resources from the
University for Foreigners Perugia. He received a doctorate degree in Agricultural Engineering from
Cranfield University,
United Kingdom. In 2011 De Silva was appointed as the second Vice-Chancellor of Uva Wellassa University, replacing the inaugural Vice-Chancellor Prof.
Chandra Embuldeniya. Prior to his appointment at Uva Wellassa University, de Silva was a professor of Geo-informatics in the Department of Agricultural Engineering at the University of Peradeniya. ==References==