02nd July 2021 14:12:21 Hours
Major General Manjula Karunarathna of the Sri Lanka Artillery Regiment, General Officer Commanding, 64 Division of the Security Force HQ in Mullaittivu on the eve of his retirement from the Army after an eventful service of more than three decades was invited by General Shavendra Silva, Chief of Defence Staff and Commander of the Army to the latter’s office at the AHQ on Thursday (1) and commended him for his untiring roles in the organization.
Major General Manjula Karunarathna as one of the proud soldiers, produced by the Sri Lanka Army artillery (SLA) has been serving as the General Officer Commanding of the 64 Division in the most recent past and rendered a noteworthy service to the Army while working closely for the welfare of needy civilians in the area. As the Secretary to the Army Christian Fellowship for well over 8 years continuously, he was instrumental in organizing the annual Army Christmas Carols and other religious programmes.
The retiring Major General Manjula Karunarathna has also served as the Brigade Commander, Artillery Brigade, Commander, 642 Brigade, Commander 622 Brigade, Deputy Commandant at Buttala Officer Career Development Centre (OCDC), Director, Psychological Operations, Colonel Media at Army HQ and a number of other key appointments in the Army and the Sri Lanka Artillery (SLA) Regimental centre during his illustrious career of more than three decades.
General Shavendra Silva during the brief interaction commended Major General Karunarathna’s dedicated services to the Army and shared a few thoughts with him. “I highly appreciate your commitment to promotion of spiritual aspects among All Ranks in the Army as a devout Christian, and more importantly as the Secretary in the Army Christian Fellowship for so many years. It is equally praiseworthy the academic contribution you made to the organization in imparting knowledge to All Ranks on ‘International Relations’ as a lecturer to different forums,” the Commander of the Army commented.
The outgoing Senior Officer also thanked the Commander of the Army for his wishes and the appreciation while mentioning the encouragement he received from the Army Chief in the performance of his duties. “Sir, you have played a remarkable role in elevating professional standards of the organization as well as in the improvement of the infrastructure of the organization, for which we are grateful,” the outgoing Major General told the Army Chief.
Towards the end of the interaction, General Shavendra Silva, appreciative of Major General’s services, awarded a special memento to the retiring Senior Officer as a symbol of recognition of his dedicated service.
