Dedication of supervising tri-service officers and other ranks who threw their weight behind the ‘Api Wenuwen Api’ housing project of the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development received recognition and appreciation during a felicitation ceremony at BMICH on Thursday (10) morning.
Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary Defence and Urban Development, who together with the Seva Vanitha Unit of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) successfully accomplished the project by erecting more than 50,000 War Hero houses, attended the ceremony as the Chief Guest at the invitation of the MoD Seva Vanitha Unit.
A total of 1381 tri-service personnel, including 600 Army personnel who in the past three years have toiled tirelessly to provide decent housing facilities for War Heroes with the funds, made available by the ‘Api Wenuwen Api’ project, received certificates of appreciation from the architect of the concept, Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa during this ceremony, attended by Mrs Ioma Rajapaksa, Chairperson, MoD Seva Vanitha Unit, Mrs Indu Rathnayake, Additional Secretary to MoD, Assistant and Additional Secretaries of the MoD, Mr Lashman Hulugalle, Director General, Media Centre for National Security, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetillake, Commanders of the Army, Navy and Air Force and a large gathering of distinguished invitees including tri-service officers.
Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa, followed by the CDS, tri-service Commanders awarded those appreciative certificates to those tri-service personnel during the ceremony. The Chief Guest making a brief speech to the occasion applauded the contribution of those personnel to realize the aspirations of their fellow-workmates, many of who had made indescribable sacrifices for the sake of the motherland.
Major General R.M.D Ratnayake, Chief of Staff at Army Headquarters welcomed the invitees to the occasion.
Mrs Roshan Goonetillake, the spouse of Chief of Defence Staff, Mrs Manjulika Jayasuriya, President, Seva Vanitha Army Branch and a few more spouses of tri-service senior officers were associated with the day’s arrangement.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
