General (Retd) Hamilton Wanasinghe, a former Army Commander and former Defense Secretary of Sri Lanka, has passed away.
Wanasinghe, who rendered invaluable service to the motherland for more than 40 years, was 91 years old at the time of his death.
He joined the then Sri Lanka Army as a cadet officer in 1954 and attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst for basic military training.
He was commissioned as a second lieutenant and commissioned as an officer in the Sri Lanka Artillery.
He held various positions in the army before becoming the Army Commander, and was appointed the 11th Commander of the Sri Lanka Army in 1988. Mr. Wanasinghe retired from the Army in 1995 and subsequently held several key positions, including the Commander of the Joint Operations Command and the Secretary to the Defence Forces.
A talented sportsman, he held the rank of Sergeant Major in the Cadet Corps during his school days.