Graced by Eng Karunasena Hettiarachchi, Secretary to Ministry of Defence as the Chief Guest, together with Mrs Karunasena Hettiarachchi, Chairperson, Ministry of Defence Seva Vanitha Unit, the ceremony, attended by Lieutenant General Crishanthe De Silva, Commander of the Army and Mrs Nayana De Silva, President, Army Seva Vanitha Unit and a host of invitees, including next of kin of recipient War Heroes, kicked off with lighting of the traditional oil lamp, recital of the Army song and the two-minute silence in memory of fallen War Heroes.
Brigadier D.C.S Wanniarachchi, Director, Directorate of Welfare made the formal welcome speech, presenting to the occasion how the ‘House Construction at Regimental Level’ Phase 1 got underway a few weeks after he took office as the Commander in coordination with 18 Regiments upon his close evaluation of the need for proper and qualitative housing facilities to the families of fallen War Heroes and differently able War Heroes. Accordingly, the Commander instructed those 18 Regiments to implement the project immediately, using land slots, made available by the beneficiaries themselves under the Phase 1 of the project to coincide with the Ranaviru commemorative month that began in May.
Formal distribution of those houses in the ceremony was first joined by Mrs Karunasena Hettiarachchi and followed by Lieutenant General Crishanthe De Silva, the pioneering architect of the project. Chief Guest for the event, Eng Karunasena Hettiarachchi afterwards gave away the keys of those new houses to the final segment of the recipients as the ceremony reached its apex.
Eng Hettiarachchi made a brief speech to the occasion and praised the Army for its thoughtfulness and success in the project within a short time span.
Towards the end of the ceremony, a house recipient making a speech of gratitude commended the Regimental support he received in the acquirement of a new house, a dream came true. The ceremony, coloured by dancers of the Army culminated with the National Song.
Under this Phase I, the relatives of fallen War Heroes and injured War Heroes from Sri Lanka Armoured Corps (SLAC), Sri Lanka Artillery (SLA), Sri Lanka Engineers (SLE), Sri Lanka Signal Corps (SLSC), Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI), Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment (SLSR), Gemunu Watch (GW), Gajaba Regiment (GR), Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment (VIR), Mechanized Infantry Regiment (MIR), Commando Regiment (CR), Special Forces (SF), Military Intelligence Corps (MIC), Sri Lanka Army Service Corps (SLASC), Sri Lanka Army Medical Corps (SLAMC), Sri Lanka Army General Service Corps (SLAGSC), Sri Lanka National Guard (SLNG) and Sri Lanka Army Women’s Corps (SLAWC), were the beneficiaries.
