Commander on ‘Nēgam’ to His Mother Regiment at Mattegoda

Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake, Commander of the Army, showing his cherished sense of gratitude to his mother Regiment, Sri Lanka Engineers (SLE), visited the 5 Field Sri Lanka Engineers camp complex at Mattegoda on the New Year day (April 14) and joined the observance of New Year rites and rituals in a rare gesture of goodwill and concern to the Sri Lanka Engineers, for which Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake was posted soon after he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant.

Reminding of the age-old tradition of visiting relatives in keeping with ‘Nēgam Yāma’ custom, the Commander joined SLE Officers and Other Rankers at the premises and boiled the auspicious milk pot as a sign of prosperity as the country was reverberated with fire cracking.

Home of the 5 Field Sri Lanka Engineers at Mattegoda, which was so close to the heart of the Commander of the Army, being it the mother Regiment for him before he had the transfer to the Special Forces (SF) extended a warm welcome to the visiting Commander of the Army on the New Year day itself. Overjoyed Commander while observing rites and rituals quipped, "I feel I have almost come home with this setting in this background since this was my breeding ground. That is why I wanted to pay my gratitude to this place at first on this auspicious day of our nation at the dawn of the New Year", the Commander has told the troops.

Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake making the auspicious visit to the 5 Field Engineers Headquarters at the time the SLE was set to hold its Sinhala and Tamil New Year festival too on a grand scale. Lieutenant General Senanayake afterwards joined hands together with members in the SLE camp and took part in several traditional games and features, associated with the occasion.

He inaugurated the day’s celebration, ‘Bakmaha Ulela 2018’ of the SLE, together with Major General Dudley Weeraman, Chief Field Engineer and Major General Dananjith Karunaratne, Director General General Staff (DGGS) at the Army Headquarters and had a couple of hours with the troops in the camp. The visiting Commander was welcomed by Major General Dudley Weeraman, Chief Field Engineer and conducted to the main venue in a procession.

Senior SLE Officers, several SLE-SVU executive members, Other Ranks, invitees and members of the civil staff enjoyed the arrangements in collective and festive spirits.

At the end of the New Year festival, the Commander of the Army and several Senior Officers gave away gifts to the winners in different events and competitions.

Neth FM provided the live coverage to the event.