Colombo, Sri Lanka, March 4 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The Sri Lanka Navy, in coordination with the Sri Lanka Air Force, launched a Search and Rescue (SAR) operation following a distress signal received by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre Colombo (MRCC Colombo) at 5:08 a.m. on Wednesday (March 04) regarding a vessel in distress in sea south of Galle. The distressed vessel was located outside Sri Lanka's territorial waters but within t...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, March 4 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) hosted a reception yesterday (March 03) in view of its 75th Anniversary, commemorating over decades of distinguished and honorable service to the nation. The event, held at the Eagles' Lakeside Banquet and Convention Hall in Attidiya last evening, celebrated the proud legacy forged through the dedication, sacrifice, and commitment of the men and women who ha...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, March 3 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The Sri Lanka Air Force marked its 75th Anniversary with a Medal Awarding Ceremony held at the Sri Lanka Air Force Headquarters today (3 March) as part of its anniversary celebration. The Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd) graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. The Defence Secretary, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd), was also present at the cere...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, March 3 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd), presided over a Public Day Programme held on 02 March in Hambantota. The programme primarily focused on addressing concerns raised by retired soldiers, particularly matters relating to housing, welfare benefits, and other service related issues affecting their well-being. A considerable number of veterans and family m...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Feb. 27 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The large scale flooding and landslides caused by 'Cyclone Ditwah' required rapid, coordinated action across multiple civilian and military agencies. While the response mitigated significant impacts, it also revealed critical operational, structural, and institutional gaps within the national disaster management system. To identify best practices for institutionalization, gaps and systemi...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Feb. 27 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The High Level Committee for Foreign Relief Aid (Supplies) Coordination (HL-FRAC) convened another session yesterday (26 Feb) chaired by the Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd) at his office in Colombo. The meeting focused on reviewing the ongoing process of distributing foreign disaster relief assistance received from foreign countries and organizations to ...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Feb. 27 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The Disaster Management Centre (DMC), in partnership with the Department of National Planning (NPD) and other key national and international development partners, is leading the Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA). The process is systematically collecting, analyzing, and evaluating data on physical damage, economic losses, and social impacts across all affected sectors, adhering to an e...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Feb. 26 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: The Cabinet has approved a comprehensive set of measures to strengthen the regulatory framework governing the private security sector, aimed at improving professionalism, service quality, and efficiency in line with national priorities. Under the new framework, initiated by the Ministry of Defence, private security institutions will be subject to stricter registration and licensing proced...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Feb. 24 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: A special meeting was convened today (24 February) at the Ministry of Defence under the chairmanship of the Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd), to discuss land-related issues identified by the Ranaviru Seva Authority and the Directorate of Veteran Affairs and Rehabilitation Services affecting war heroes and their family members, and to provide prompt solutio...
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Feb. 23 -- Ministry of Defence and Urban Development issued the following news release: Following the recent Cabinet decision to hand over the management of the Dr. Neville Fernando Teaching Hospital (NFTH) in Malabe to the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF), Defence Secretary Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd) paid an official inspection visit to the hospital today (23 February). He was received by the Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Bandu Edirisinghe, upon his arr...