{"id":97321,"date":"2020-01-05T13:25:17","date_gmt":"2020-01-05T20:25:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=97321"},"modified":"2020-01-05T13:25:17","modified_gmt":"2020-01-05T20:25:17","slug":"eelam-war-series-9-the-armed-forces-after-eelam-war-iv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/01\/05\/eelam-war-series-9-the-armed-forces-after-eelam-war-iv\/","title":{"rendered":"EELAM WAR SERIES 9. THE ARMED FORCES AFTER EELAM WAR IV"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

During the Eelam war, the UNP\ngovernment decided to weaken the army by sending troops abroad. UK\u2019s General\nRose was invited to study the armed forces and advise on sending Sri Lanka\ntroops for UN assignments abroad (2002). The service commanders had no say in\nthe matter.  In 2004, Sri Lanka sent\ntroops to the UN peace keeping forces in Haiti. These troops were not recalled\nwhen Eelam war IV started. They continued in Haiti till the UN project ended in\n2015. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri Lanka is one of the longest\nserving nations in the UN mission in Haiti. They helped in the Haiti earthquake\nof 2010.   They have also provided\nhumanitarian services such as  blood\ndonations ,distribution  water, food  and school items.    They had been the first to help in a bus\naccident, providing technical and professional assistance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sri Lanka force won the UN\nHaiti medal in 2012. Their contribution was considered exceptional, their\ndiscipline and conduct was admired. In 2014 Sri Lanka UN contingent in Haiti\nhas been praised by the UN for their contribution in evacuation of victim in a\nbus accident, they had been the first to come on the scene, provided both\ntechnical and professional assistance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The armed forces were thereafter\nsent to Lebanon, Ethiopia, Congo, Burundi, Western Sahara, and Sudan. The troops in Haiti and Lebanon were admired by those\nworking alongside them. The Lebanon team was\nhonored with medals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In South Sudan they were asked\nto build and operate a hospital. It was considered one of the fastest, well\nplanned projects of the time. Hospital has 66 Sri Lanka army staff, including\nSri Lanka army doctors. Services include medical specialists, operating\ntheatre, intensive care unit, emergency departments, and outpatient\ndepartment.  In 2015 Sri Lanka sent an\nair force contingent to South Sudan, for VIP transportation, food and equipment\ndistribution, and   medical evacuation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sri Lanka contingents have\nbeen recognized for their commitment, competence, and ability in all UN\nassignments. They were assigned the toughest areas during their missions and\nwere been lauded for their splendid performance.  Within a short space of time they were able\nto make a positive impact on UN peacekeeping efforts. We have established a UN\npeacekeeping training school at Kukulu Ganga, which is recognized by the UN,\nsaid the authorities in 2015.  In 2012,\nover 100 army officers and over 1000 soldiers were abroad  and their remittances are a significant\naddition to the national revenue. The three services rotate their overseas\ncontingents twice a year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Yahapalana government has\nhinted that our armed forces would be increasingly sent on UN peacekeeping\nmissions said critics. It was reported\nelsewhere  that      the government wanted to send more troops\nto UN peacekeeping operations. They would include combat transport companies,\ntwo field engineering platoons, Special Forces, three infantry battalions, one\nexplosive ordinance disposal company, also two police units.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UN peacekeeping\nmissions have now become increasingly dangerous and complex.  They are employed in the middle of the\nongoing conflicts, against armed groups using sophisticated weapons. They also\nhave to face transnational criminal networks and terrorist organizations.   Europe and USA do not therefore wish to send\narmies into conflict areas. Instead they are turning to the third world and\n\u2018our leaders are running to oblige\u2019, said critics.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The army  was sent to Nepal for earthquake relief in\n2015. They were sent to a particularly difficult area, Dolaghat .They had\ntravelled on long and difficult routes to treat patients and clear roads,\ndespite frequent aftershocks and danger of landslides. The engineering corps\nhad cleared over six kms of roads, repaired water links, suspension bridges.\nThe Medical corp had treated over 2442 patients. Sri Lanka used it own funds\nfor hiring heavy vehicles and equipment. Nepal was very appreciative. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the Eelam War IV victory,\nthe Sri Lanka military forces received much praise and recognition. In 2010,\nMajor General Mahinda Hathurusinghe, Commander, Security forces headquarters,\nJaffna, was awarded the\nGusi Peace Prize, Manila. In 2011, Indian Military academy at   Dehra Dun, India\u2019s most prestigious military\nschool honored the Sri Lanka Army by inviting its commander, General Jagath\nJaysuriya as chief guest of the passing out parade. This is the first ever Sri\nLanka Army Commander to have been invited to the occasion as Chief Guest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The Sri\nLanka armed forces found that other countries wanted to learn the military\ntechniques perfected by the Sri Lanka army. The \u2018Joint war gaming centre\u2019 at\nthe Defence Services Command and Staff College, Sapugaskanda held annual\ntraining courses. In the 2014 course there were 101 middle grade officers from\nSri Lanka and 16 from Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Nepal,\nOman, Pakistan Rwanda, Senegal, and Vietnam. The newspapers showed a photograph\nof the group examining a large map of Vanni west and Gulf of Mannar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri Lanka army\u2019s field training exercise, \u2018Cormorant strike\u2019 was\nstarted in 2000. This is a mock field training exercise designed for joint\nspecial operations working as one team. The\n<\/em>purpose was to share the skills the Sri Lanka army had acquired in the May\n2009 operation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Strike was conducted at Kokilai in 2015. This was a mega exercise\nwith commandos and Special Forces of the army, 245 sailors, and 140 airmen.\nThere were 53 foreign participants and observers from Bangladesh, China, India,\nIndonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, and USA. In 2017, Cormorant Strike VIII\nwas held at Infantry Training Centre, Minneriya. It had 69 foreign participants\nfrom Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kenya,\nMalaysia, Maldives, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Russia, Sudan, Turkey, and USA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2006,  the Defence Ministry, on the initiative\nof   Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Defence\nsecretary, set up Rakna Arakshaka Lanka Limited, a fully government owned\nlimited liability company,  providing\nsecurity services to important government installations and institutions such\nas the Mahaweli dams and the Petroleum Corporation. It was a state owned\nenterprise coming under the review of COPE. Made up entirely of ex-armed forces\npersonnel, this special security service was meant to eliminate the need to\ndeploy army and police personnel to guard infrastructure and to release them\nfor duties in the war zone. Rakna Lanka provided security services to 49\ngovernment institutions during and after the war, including Sri Lanka\nRupavahini and BMICH.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sri Lanka navy continues to be\nhighly recognized for its role in the Eelam War IV. The expertise of the navy\npersonnel who retire are much sought after by both public and private sector.\nSri Lanka navy organizes the \u2018Galle dialogues\u2019, an annual maritime conference\non safety in Indian Ocean region. At the first conference in 2010 only 11\ncountries had come. There were 35 participants in 2013  and 42 in 2016. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri Lanka Navy said it was more than happy to share its hard-earned\nasymmetric warfare experience with military counterparts across the oceans. The\n5th Asymmetric Warfare Course  of the Sri\nLanka Navy, was conducted in 2017, the course was  attended by 20 foreign military personnel\nfrom Bangladesh, China, India, Maldives, Netherlands, Nigeria and Pakistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The three-month course comprised\na wide range of Asymmetric Warfare related affairs viz. weapons training,\ncombat shooting, small group operations, jungle warfare, clandestine maritime\noperations, small boat operations, field training exercises, survival at sea\netc. The Special Boat Squadron, the elite force of the Sri Lanka Navy\nfacilitated the proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri Lanka Navy  stated \u2018 we take credit for maintaining peace\nin  our regions, even during the conflict\nwe did not allow the terrorists to hold world shipping to ransom, like what is\nhappening in the Gulf of Aden. We kept our ports safe for maritime trade. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the war, Sri Lanka continued to take a lead in controlling sea\npiracy. It created creating a Maritime Division in the state owned Rakna Lanka,\nto provide weapons and ammunition to private maritime security companies\nengaged on board security duties. This is\nan UN approved activity and there are procedures to be followed. It is a very\nprofitable enterprise and profits go to the government. Rakna  became the foremost organization providing\nsecurity of ships it this region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In partnership with a local private security\ncompany, Avant Garde,   Rakna also\nstarted to provide vessels with on board teams which included former navy\npersonnel with considerable expertise in combating attacks on sea. Sri Lanka is a major disembarkation point for security\nteams from other countries. Sri Lanka navy provides logistical support for\nthe  movement of weapons and ammunition\nincluding the provision of bonded warehouses for their storage.  Sri Lanka has also begun operating\nstringently regulated and secure floating armories to fulfill this requirement\nsaid the navy in 2013.  Sri Lanka is\nincreasingly gaining recognition as an important contributor to the security of\nthe sea lanes of communication in the Indian Ocean. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2010 Sri Lanka offered its expertise to\nUN to combat piracy. Sri Lanka government has also worked with the\ngovernment of India and Maldives on establishing a trilateral agreement for\ncooperation in surveillance, antipiracy operations and curbing illegal\nactivities. On a request of the UN office on Drugs and crime, the Sri Lanka Navy\nconducted a specialized ship boarding training for the naval and coastguard\nofficers of Madagascar and Comoros. The Sri Lanka Navy had also helped to\ncontrol illegal migration to Australia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sri\nLanka Air Force has conducted Colombo Air symposium from 2015. The\nsymposium is organized by the Sri Lanka Air Force on an annual basis with the\nobjective of developing a wider perspective on global air power, and increasing\ncooperation, understanding, and goodwill among the represented nations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 At Colombo Air\nSymposium 2017, held under the theme \u2018Air Power in Addressing Asymmetric\nThreats,\u2019 military leaders, technical experts, global think tanks and diplomats\nrepresenting all regions of the world came together to share their knowledge to\nbuild up unified global air power to address future challenges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Officers who had\nretired from the Sri Lanka Air Force started Ceylon Aeronautical Services Ltd,\noffering maintenance, repair, and overhaul of planes. CAS is located on a five\nacre block of land at Koggala EPZ, next to SLAF Koggala, formerly a Royal Air\nForce station.  Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, then\nSecretary, Defense had helped to launch the project. \u2018If not for Mr.\nRajapaksa\u2019s intervention, CAS couldn\u2019t have got off the ground,\u2019 the company\nsaid. In 2018 CAS was providing services to Trans Maldivian Airways, SriLankan,\nSea Wings, Dubai, Cinnamon Air and local flying schools. It has entered into an\nagreement with Nepal Airlines. CAS workforce consists of about 100 workers,\nwith about 40 being ex-SLAF. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no war now, but war\npreparedness is necessary and the armored forces must remain as they are said\nthe Army Commander in 2013. We continue our training. We keep the army fit and\nready to face any threat.  Certain\nbattalions, such as Commandos, STF and other specialist forces are strictly for\nnational security. There are at present 7800 STF, there is\nprovision for recruiting 1000 more. The armed forces have now moved into their own\ncantonments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Members of the Ex Commando\nlegion participated in a 24 km walk from Galle Face Green to Ganemulla in 2013.\nThe event was organized by the Sri Lanka Army Commando regiment. They performed\nsome commando techniques. \u2018This is to show that what we did yesterday, we can\nstill do today.\u2019 they said in their TV interview. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schools to accommodate\nchildren of armed forces and police are to be built in other parts of the\nisland, first is coming up in Kurunegala, sources said in 2013. During the past\nsix years, 940 students had received scholarships   on passing the\ngrade V exam. In 2013, 138 pupils received such scholarships. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The new Military hospital at Narahenpita,\nColombo was built by the Sri Lanka Engineers Service regiment. It was started in\n2009 and completed in 2014. President Rajapaksa had allocated Rs.  4 billion, when the project has been suggested\nby Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. Cost was 6.5 billion but it is worth 10 billion so army\nhas saved the country 4 billion. We have the manpower to run it, entirely by\nprofessionally trained army personnel for both administration and medical\nduties, said the army. The hospital also serves the families of the army.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The military is doing everything\u201d said the army\ncommander in an interview in 2013. They are running cafes, building roads,\nbridges, houses and stadium, the engineering services do tanks and canal\nrenovation.  Certain battalions have\ntaken over and are cultivating government agricultural land. We have\nestablished our own farms.   Is this\nmilitarization? It is not, said the Army Commander. We are saving the\ngovernment money in terms of labour costs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 In 2012 the Army was running two farms of 360\nacres and 11130 acres at Kantale and Kandakuda. Kandakuda farm was abandoned\nafter its workers were killed by the LTTE. \u2018Today it is under the army.\u2019 They\nwere exporting Cavendish plantains. Dairy farm had 120 cows. Army is also\nmaintaining a tile factory and brick factory. Tile factory was a joint venture\nwith Ceylon Ceramic Corporation. Army had been asked to fill in due to shortage\nof labour. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 In 2014 it was reported that the Civil Defence\nForce \u2018is now engaged in agriculture at Kebetigollewa\u2019  .They have cultivated over 812 acres, of\npaddy, maize, kurakkan, gingelly, urad dhal, cowpea, green gram, fruits and\nvegetables. They use compost fertilizer only, produced through their compost\nfertilizer manufacturing plants in each sub zone.  There is a new paddy warehouse at Kebetigollewa.\nThe rice is offered to the military camps at Medawachchiya, Kebetigollewa,\nColombo and Padaviya. They have also repaired furniture in nearby   schools and  \ndonated blood. They have renovated\nBakmeewewa and Werabanda wewa as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rajapaksa government did not\nallow its greatly expanded military to lie idle after the end of Eelam War IV.\nThey were used for a wide range of activities. The armed forces have been used\nby Sri Lanka for detection of crime. The armed forces have been engaged in\nnarcotics detection even during Eelam war. They\nhave made detections on the sea as well. This is now the biggest peace time\noperation, we are making detections almost every day in various parts of the\ncountry, the Army said in 2012. Troops deployed alongside the police have so\nfar apprehended about 300 suspects along with a substantial quantity of heroin\nand ganja. Detections were made in several places including Jaffna, Vavuniya,\nand Eastern province. The operation is targeting\nthe trade at different levels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2011\nand 2012 the STF used its skills in detection for illegal gem mining, Illegal\nassembly of vehicles, sale of smuggled cigarettes, and selling cannabis. STF was\nused to nab underworld gangsters as well. After the shoot out of prisoners on a\ndrug raid, Commissioner General of Prisons urged the Defense Ministry to take\nover the prisons. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The armed services were used for\nvarious peace time activities too. Army had helped with more than 20 major\nbuilding projects in 2012.  Government\nhas saved nearly 1500 million on expenditure, which would otherwise have gone\nto private firms or abroad, by using the armed service for development work\nafter the war, instead of confining them to barracks, said the authorities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Army and navy were used to\nrefurbish Colombo\u2019s dilapidated structures. The   race course pavilions in Colombo were\nrefurbished by the army, under Gotabhaya Rajapakse, then Secretary of Defence.\nThe race course area was converted to a set of shopping malls, an international\nstandard rugby field, and a sports ministry complex. The buildings were        renovated retaining its architectural\nuniqueness. The work was carried out by the Sri Lanka army 6th regiment. About\n300 soldiers worked on the project. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Auditor General\nbuilding was converted to the 85,000 sq feet Arcade Independence Square\nproject, in just two years.  It was for\nhigh end private sector business enterprises. \nA team of architects were sent to Paris to learn about heritage\nbuildings. Army has also refurbished the science faculty building of the\nUniversity of Colombo. SAARC cultural fund building was to cost 907 million,\narmy helped save Rs. 110 million. Medical faculty building allocation was 1477\nbillion army helped to save nearly 492 million. CDF helped renovate Elphinstone theatre in Maradana. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gotabhaya Rajapaksa\nwas praised by two newspaper readers, for his work in Infrastructure\ndevelopment, city beautification, and environmental cleanliness. One reader\nsaid these were all done by \u2018Gota\u2019 who could win wars and then play a major\nrole in the country developments. \u2018Gota\u2019 had got in every police station an\nofficer who went out as early as 5 am to designated areas to oversee the\ncleanliness of the area. \u2018This is exemplary work\u2019. The second reader said, the\nCMC did very little as regards garbage, but with the UDA under Defense\nsecretary Gotabhaya, radical changes have taken place. The army and navy have\nbeen at it, doing the cleaning and so on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The Army helped in other miscellaneous ways.\nThe Electrical and Mechanical Engineers division of the Army installed a drinking\nwater pumping system at Kahattewala Rahula Vidyalaya of the Haputale\neducational Zone in 2014. They put up the money for the pump themselves. Army\nconstructed a new bridge across Kadolanaduwa water way at Moragalla, Beruwela.\nThe army was asked to rehabilitate 3200 reservoirs and tanks in north central\nprovince in 2013. The army\nhas helped in the renovation of Mihintale  and Tissamaharama Vihara. Kalagam vehera and Handagala Rajamaha vihara \u2018were\nrepaired and made suitable for worship\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The army carried out a massive road building operation\nin the east. They improved the road running from Trincomalee to Mutur and\nbeyond   and gave it eight bridges. The\narmy bought paddy at Rs 30, in the Eastern province to help the farmer and\nobtain food for the army. About 200 farmers sold their paddy to the army.\nFarmers were otherwise obliged to sell to the middle man. A metal crusher was\nrun by the army Engineering Service regiment at Welikanda camp.  In\n2014 the Army began the rehabilitation of the salterns at Elephant Pass.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\narmed forces have helped in disasters. in 2012, Disaster Management Center\nasked the air force to aid in forest firefighting.  More than 1000 soldiers performed the arduous\ntask of   searching and saving in the\nlandslide at Meeriyabadda, Koslanda in 2014. \nAir Force helped in floods and landslides of 2016. They engaged in\nrescue operations, they evacuated people,  \ntraced stranded victims, airlifted consignments of dry rations, and\ndistributed meals. The navy rescued 22,675 people, transferred them to safe\nlocations, and carried out other flood relief activities.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Dutch\ntourist had fallen off the precipice at Worlds end by going too close to the\nedge on his honeymoon to take a photograph. He had managed to cling to a branch\nof a tree about 25 meters into his fall, the local police called the army. A\ncorporal from the 3rd Sinha     regiment\nmade his way down the precipice with the aid of a rope soldiers then carried\nthe Dutch man on their shoulders about five km to reach a vehicle, an army chopper,\nto send him to hospital, where it was found that he only had minor bruises and\nscratches. He was discharged. The soldier Sudesh Lalinda had risked him life to\ndo this. He was promoted to sergeant and army said they would help finish his\nhalf built house. The rescuer had declined to accept the cash reward offered by\nthe grateful couple. The other eight soldiers were also promoted to the next\nrank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the conclusion of the war the army held some\n11600 terrorists and close to 300,000 civilians. The army embarked on a\nrehabilitation process for LTTE ex-combatants. Five hundred and ninety four of\nthose who ran to the government in 2009 were child soldiers aged 12-18. All of\nthem have been put through rehabilitation programmes and reunited with their\nfamilies. The speed with which rehabilitation was done and the methods used\nhave won praise internationally. Their strategies are being used as a model in\nsome other countries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most formidable challenge after Eelam War IV\nwas the de-mining. This is a legacy of the LTTE. Sri Lanka achieved an\nimpressive record in this demining having cleared 1,319 sq km out of an area of\n1,419 by 2012. Mine detection dog Alvin and his handler Lance corporal G.N.W.M.\nNavaratne were selected as the Mine detection Team of the Year in 2016 by the\nUS based Marshall Legacy Institute. From 2011 they have together demined\napproximately land area of 73,340 sq mm in the north and east. This has enabled\n1945 displaced of 415 families to return to their original places of\ninhabitation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2009, Army came across a large stock of gold\njewelry that had been hidden. There were 852 bangles, 188 small bangles, 20\ndamaged bangles. These had been kept neatly hidden. Before this army had found\nanother stock of jewelry. This jewelry had been pawned at the LTTE Eelam bank\nin the area. The army has shown exceptional conduct in this matter (Sunday Observer 5.7.09 p 11).  Security forces\nhave recovered gold jewellery worth Rs 680 million during operation in Vanni\neast. They were handed over to state owned banks (Island 23.11.09 p 1). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 In 2014 it\nwas report that the army recovered 2379 sets of jewellery pawned in bank in\nvarious locations the Northern Province; they have identified 1960 rightful\nowners, 319 Vavuniya, 45 Jaffna, 1187 in Kilinochchi, 186 in Mullaitivu. These\nwill be handed over today. Army commander stated that the army had to go to\neach and every house in the province to find the rightful owners of these\nvaluables. (Daily\nNews  27.11.14 p 1)  However, TULF at its AGM on 29.12.12. decided\nto demand that the government return the gold recovered or seized from the LTTE\nby the security forces during and after the war\/ They must hand them over to\ntheir owners who have proof of their ownership. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2014 the consulate of Sri Lanka in Sydney,\nAustralia honored the army for liberating the North .They must never forget the\nheroic sons and daughters who laid down their lives. Colonel Atureliya who\ndelivered the Ranaviru commemoration speech said that their victory would not\nhave been possible if not, inter alia, for the brave soldiers. One has to live\nin the precincts, hear the explosions, see the carnage, hear the cries of those\nwho were injured, see human flesh dangling from heights, brains scattered, the\ndamage to property, the sirens of ambulances, to understand what it was like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government of Mahinda Rajapaksa did not forget the\nwar heroes. The Rajapaksa government had projects to build houses for them,\ngrant housing loans, self employment projects, three wheelers, scholarships for\nchildren, pensions for parents of soldiers who died and welfare measure for the\ndisabled,   reported the media in 2013. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2014 it was reported that\nhouses have been given to war heroes in 19 districts. The government aims to\nbuild    50,000 housing units for them,\nin five years of 10,000 per year. Recipients were chosen along guidelines, constructed\nby the army engineers.    Another report\nin 2014 stated that 700 hundred houses are planned in the \u2018Api venuven api\u2019\nhousing programme, in Kandy, then Matara, then Hambantota. 101 Houses are also\nbeing built for army personnel in Puttalam, 63  for Army, 22  Navy and 16  for Air Force. The recipients selected are low\nincome war heroes. Each unit three bedrooms, pantry, kitchen, living room, and\ncosts nine lakhs each concluded the report. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The armed forces did not forget\ntheir disabled. 220 army personnel\nare permanently disabled. The army is taking care of 160 of them.  5918 war heroes disabled in terrorist attacks\nhave already retired from the army with all privileges. They have been granted\na disabled pension plus monthly salary and all other allowances and privileges\nsaid the army in 2014. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two apparel factories known as\nRanaviru Apparels, at Yakkala and Alawwa were set up to provide employment for\ndisabled soldiers. The Yakkala factory was set up on a 10 acre block of land,\nhalf donated by owner Meric Peiris and the other half purchased from him. This\nproject was stated in 1998. It is run entirely by disabled soldiers. The\nfactory has army camp status and is a combination of civil and military. There\nis also a housing complex and farm in which vegetables, medical herbs and\nfruits are grown and sold to the staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The factory provides 60% of the\narmy uniforms, made in 32 sizes. It also produces folding mattresses for the\narmy, and other items like track kits. All products maintain highly quality\nstandards. The two factories have been upgraded and brought into line with\ninternational standards and modernized. They are now gearing to enter the\ninternational export market. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others are also concerned about the disabled war veterans. ‘Sumana\nRanaviru Sahana Padanama\u2019, founded by Ven. Daranagama Sumanaratana with the\napproval of the Defence Ministry, Army Commander and the Rehabilitation\nDirectorate, together with the support\nof the  laity has taken 550 disabled war\nheroes on pilgrimage to Sri Pada in the past 18 years, carrying them on\nshoulders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

War memorials have been built at\nstrategic points to commemorate the war victory. Sri Lanka Armored Corp created\na war memorial at Kalaththawe in Anuradhapura in 2015.    schools that contributed  many soldiers \nproudly commemorate that occurenece. Nalanda Old Boys Association (\nJunior brahcn) organized a Nalanda Ranaviru Upahara in 2016. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The role played by Ananda in the separatist war\nwhich ended May 2009, merits special mention. The military commanders, who\ndefeated the Tamil separatists in 2009, were primarily from Ananda.  The Permanent Secretary for Defence\n(Gotabhaya Rajapakse) Commander of the Army (Sarath Fonseka) Commander of the\nNavy (Wasantha Karannagoda) and the Director-General of the Department of Civil\nSecurity, (Sarath Weerasekara) were Anandians. \nOthers holding high rank such as Major General Jagath Dias, Major\nGeneral Kamal Guneratne, Brigadier Prasanna Silva and Brigadier Chagi Gallege\nwere also from Ananda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recognising the uniqueness of this, the Daily\nNews of 3.7.2009 ran a special supplement featuring the contribution of Ananda\nCollege to the Eelam War.  The supplement\nstated that no other school can claim to have sent so many entrants to the\narmed forces. Sarath Weerasekera said that Ananda continued to create patriotic\nleaders and that the exceptional military leadership provided in the Eelam War\nhad come from pupils of Ananda. Anandians were brought up with patriotism and\ninculcated with national minded core strengths and values\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ananda College continues to remember. \nWhen Ananda celebrated its 125th anniversary, in November 2011, mention\nwas made of the Anandians who fought in 2009. Daily News<\/em> said that patriotism and bravery came naturally to the\nAnandian. The news supplement on Ananda Abhiman festivities in March 2012  again emphasised that the Sri Lanka  Army and Navy had more Anandians than any\nother College. ( continued)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS During the Eelam war, the UNP government decided to weaken the army by sending troops abroad. UK\u2019s General Rose was invited to study the armed forces and advise on sending Sri Lanka troops for UN assignments abroad (2002). The service commanders had no say in the matter.  In 2004, Sri Lanka sent troops […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-97321","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97321"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97321\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}