The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. Established as the Ceylon Army in 1948, it was renamed when Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972. In 2010, the Army had approximately 200,000 regular personnel, between 20,000 and 40,000 reserve (volunteer) personnel and 18,000 National Guardsmen and comprises 13 operational divisions, one air-mobile brigade, one commando brigade, one special forces brigade, one independent armored brigade, three mechanized infantry brigades and over 40 infantry brigades. From the 1980s to 2009 the army was engaged in the Sri Lankan Civil War.
The Parama Weera Vibhushanaya is the highest decoration awarded by the Sri Lankan military, equivalent to the British Victoria Cross and the United States Medal of Honor. The medal is awarded to all ranks of the tri services, to both regular- and volunteer forces, in recognition of:
...individual acts of gallantry and conspicuous bravery of a non-military nature of the most exceptional order performed voluntarily with no regard to his own life and security with the objective of saving or safeguarding the life or lives of a person or personnel imperiled by death or for a meritorious act or a series of acts of a humane nature of an exceptional order displayed in saving life from drowning, fire and rescue operations in mines, floods and similar calamities under circumstances of grave bodily injury or great danger to the life of the rescuer...
The Rana Wickrama Padakkama is awarded to Sri Lankan military service personnel serving in both the regular- and volunteer forces as a reward for:
...individual or associated acts of bravery in the face of the enemy and performed voluntarily...
The Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya is awarded to senior officers of the Military of Sri Lanka in recognition of:
...exceptional, distinguished and loyal service provided they count not less than twenty-five years of service and possess an unblemished record of moral and military conduct...
The following tables present the military ranks and insignia of the Sri Lanka Air Force. Upon the formation of the Sri Lanka Air Force in 1951, rank titles and badges for ORs were adopted from the Royal Air Force officer ranks and enlisted ranks, specifically the Royal Flying Corps. Sri Lanka does have an Air Chief Marshal rank, but it is only awarded to the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) or as an honorary rank; Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetileke was the only Sri Lankan Air Force officer to hold a four-star rank while in active service.
The following tables present the military ranks and insignia of the Sri Lanka Navy. These ranks generally correspond with those of Western or Commonwealth Nations militaries, and reflect those of the British warrant officer, non-commissioned officer and enlisted ranks and the Commissioned officer ranks. Sri Lanka does have an Admiral rank, but it is usually only awarded to the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) or as an honorary rank; Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda was the only Sri Lankan naval officer to hold a four-star rank while in active service.
The Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI) is the oldest regiment in the Sri Lanka Army and the oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of ten regular battalions and five volunteer battalions, and is headquartered at the Panagoda Cantonment, Panagoda. Over the years it has become the most distinguished and dependable regiment in the army.
The Sri Lanka Armed Services Long Service Medal is a service award presented to all ranks of the tri-forces of Sri Lanka. Service personnel are eligible for the award on the completion of 12 years' continuous service with perfect character and discipline. General officers commanding/area commanders/commanding officers forward recommendations to service commanders. Reserve- or volunteer forces may qualify for this award provided that their service periods add up to 12 years.
The following tables present the military ranks and insignia of the Sri Lanka Army. These ranks generally correspond with those of Western or Commonwealth Nations militaries, and reflect those of the British Warrant Officer, Non-Commissioned Officer and ordninary soldier ranks and the Commissioned officer ranks. The highest attainable rank in the Sri Lanka Army is a Lieutenant General which is held by the Commander of the Army. However the Sri Lanka Army does have a Full General rank, but it is usually only awarded to the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) or as an honorary rank; Sarath Fonseka was the only Sri Lankan Army Chief to hold the full general rank of the Sri Lanka army while serving as the Sri Lankan Army Commander in 2009, also in 2015 he was awarded to the rank of Field Marshal for life.
The Riviresa Campaign Services Medal was a campaign medal presented to all ranks of the regular and volunteer forces of the Military of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Police, as well as civilians that were involved in planning or assisting Operation Riviresa, one of the most notable successes of the Sri Lankan forces during Eelam War III.
The Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) is the most senior appointment in the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, and the highest-ranking military officer in service, outranking the heads of each service branch. The CDS does not, however, have operational command authority over service branches, but rather oversees inter-service co-operation and develops and implements the joint operations doctrine of the Sri Lankan armed forces. Coordination of inter-service joint operations are handled by the Office of the Chief of Defence Staff formally known as the Joint Operations Headquarters.
The North and East Operations Medal was a decoration presented to servicepersons of the Military of Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka Police for service in the country's Northern and Eastern provinces during the course of the Sri Lankan Civil War.
General Deshamanya Joseph Everard Denis Perera, VSV, FCMI was a senior Sri Lanka Army officer who served as Commander of the Sri Lankan Army from 1977 to 1981. He was also the Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Australia, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Ceylon Tobacco Company and Chancellor of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University. He envisioned for a women's corps in the army which resulted in the creation of the Sri Lanka Army Women's Corps in 1979.
General Ganegoda Appuhamelage Don Granville Nalin Seneviratne, VSV, ndc, SLE was a Sri Lankan Army officer. He was the Commander of the Sri Lankan Army from 1985 to 1988 and first Governor of the North East Province.
General is the second-highest rank, and the highest active rank, of the Sri Lankan Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of general; it is also considered a four-star rank.
Lieutenant general is the second-highest active rank of the Sri Lanka Army. It was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of lieutenant general, and is considered a three-star rank.
General Rohan De Silva Daluwatte, WWV, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP was a general of the Sri Lanka Army. He served as Commander of the Sri Lanka Army and Chief of the Defence Staff. Following his retirement from the army, he served as Sri Lankan Ambassador to Brazil among other appointments.
Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekara, RSP, VSV, USP, MP is a Sri Lankan senior naval officer and politician. He is the current cabinet Minister of Public Security and State Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government. He was former State Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government Affairs, member of parliament and former Deputy Minister of Labour and Labour Relations. He had served as the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Navy and first Director General of the Civil Security Force.
General Hamilton Wanasinghe, VSV is a Sri Lankan general. He was the 11th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army (1988–1991), third General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Joint Operations Headquarters (JOH) (1991–1993) and Permanent Secretary for Defense. was the 11th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army (1993–1995). He was appointed on 16 August 1988 until 15 November 1991. He was succeeded by Cecil Waidyaratne.
The Northern Humanitarian Operations Medal was a Sri Lankan campaign medal for action during Eelam War IV, presented to:
