island.lk

Indian Army Commander Gen. Vijay Kumar Singh arrived here yesterday on a five-day official visit as a special guest of his Sri Lankan counterpart, Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya.

General Singh was received at the Bandaranaike International Airport by Sri Lanka Army chief Lt. Gen. Jagath Jayasuriya and his wife Manjulika.

The Indian Army Chief’s five-member delegation comprises Mrs Bharti Singh, President, Army Wives’0 Welfare Association (AWWA), Major Gen. Harminderjit Singh Sachdev SM, General Officer Commanding, Infantry Division, Brig. Jatinder Pal Singh, Military Assistant and Mrs. Aravinder Kaur.

General Singh’s is the first-ever highest level Army delegation from India to visit Sri Lanka since the conclusion of the war. .

The visiting Indian Army Chief is scheduled to have meetings with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne, Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris, Secretary of Defence Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Chief of Defence Staff and Commander of the Air Force, Commander of the Army and Commander of the Navy among others. He will also pay a floral tribute to the Indian Peace Keeping Forces (IPKF) memorial at Battaramulla.

General Singh will visit the Security Forces Headquarters Wanni in Vavuniya and the Indian de-mining sites at Omanthai. He will also visit places of religious and cultural interest at Anuradhapura. His itinerary in Trincomalee includes visits to Oil Farm, Monkey Bridge, Naval Dockyard, Naval Museum and sacred Koneshwaram Hindu Temple. In Trincomalee, the visiting Indian Army Chief will pay a courtesy call on Governor for Eastern Province S. Chandrakanthan.

General Singh is scheduled visit the Sri Lanka Military Academy at Diyatalawa, the country’s pioneer Army officer cadet training institute, followed by the placing of floral wreaths at the SLMA cenotaph, planting of saplings and viewing of cadet officers under training. A Guard Turnout is to greet him on arrival at the main entrance to the SLMA. The same evening, he is also to pay respect to Kandy Sri Dalada Maligawa and visit Peradeniya Botanical Garden.

As the final leg of his tour to Sri Lanka, General Singh is to address student officers at Defence Services Command and Staff College in Sapugaskanda.

General Singh’s wife Mrs. Bharti Singh, President, AWWA, on the sidelines of the main programme, is to be received during a welcome ceremony as Chief Guest by the Seva Vanitha Army Branch (SVAB). Reception and all other related arrangements at the SVAB are to be coordinated by Manjulika Jayasuriya, President SVAB in Colombo whereas Mrs Singh’s itinerary arrangements elsewhere are to be organized. The visiting military delegation is also expected to speak to War Heroes under rehabilitation at Ragama ‘Ranaviru Sevana’. High Commissioner for India Ashok K. Kantha and his deputy Vikram Misri are scheduled to have separate meetings with the visiting Indian Army Chief during his stay in Colombo.

General Vijay Kumar Singh with his wide ranging experience of various high profile command, staff and instructional appointments actively took part in the Operation ‘Pawan’ in Sri Lanka during 1987 when the IPKF troops were serving here. He also has seen action in the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971, just a year after he was commissioned in 2 Rajput Regiment in 1970.

General Singh, reputed as a veteran in Counter Insurgency Operations has an illustrious career with outstanding performance on all the courses that he has attended. He is a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, India, US Army Rangers Course at Fort Benning, USA and US Army War College, Carlisle.

In recognition of his exceptional and distinguished commitment he has been awarded with Param Vishisht Seva Medal by the President of India on the eve of Republic Day 2009. To his credit, he has also commanded the prestigious Strike Corps in western sector before taking over the command of the Eastern Army in March 2008. In appreciation of his dedication in an operationally sensitive area and his contribution to the Counter Insurgency Force in Jammu and Kashmir, he was awarded Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for his exemplary service as General Officer Commanding.

General Vijay Kumar Singh became the Chief of the Army Staff, Indian Army on 31st March 2010.