The appointment was made by Minister of Fisheries - Joseph Michael Perera.

An old boy of Royal College, Sathyanandan earlier functioned as the chairman of the Sri Lanka Land Reclamation & Development Corporation (SLLR&DC) and the National Water Supply & Drainage Board.

He has also served as the Private Secretary of Arumugam Thondaman as well as the public coordinating secretary of Saumyamoorthy Thondaman.