COMMANDER OF THE NAVY INSPECTS VNF ANNUAL CAMP DIVISIONS

Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Jayanath Colombage inspected the divisions of the Volunteer Naval Force Annual Camp held at the Welisara Naval Complex Grounds on 24^th January 2014. President of the Navy Seva Vanitha Unit, Mrs. Srima Colombage, Chief of Staff of the Navy, Rear Admiral Jayantha Perera, Commander Western Naval Area & Commandant VNF, Rear Admiral Sirimewan Ranasinghe, senior naval officers and Commanding Officer VNF, Commodore IMP Sarath were also present on the occasion.

Commander of the Navy in his address commended the valuable service rendered by the VNF and stated that the contribution of its personnel towards the nation building in particular is indeed praiseworthy. Their expertise and skills are being utilized today in great measure to fulfill the onerous tasks entrusted to the Navy under numerous projects with the dawn of peace . The exceptional performances of VNF personnel in various spheres including that of sports have brought credit to the Navy and fame to the motherland. Paying tribute to the heroic VNF personnel, the Commander stated that they will be remembered with due gratitude for the noble sacrifices they had made during the humanitarian operation to liberate the nation from the scourge of terrorism. Expressing his appreciation, the Commander of the Navy stated that the conduct of the divisions during his inspection was of high standard and he was pleased to see such an exceptional turn-out at a VNF annual camp. The event concluded with a colourful band display and a spectacular cultural show.

The VNF annual training camp is conducted to update the knowledge and skills of Volunteer Naval Force personnel who are not mobilized. The event concludes with the Commander of the Navy's Divisions and a ceremonial parade.

The Sri Lanka Volunteer Naval Force is the main arm of the Sri Lanka Navy with naval training, vigilant in readiness to provide expertise and man power in times of national urgency and distress. It supplements and provides the Regular Naval Force with required assistance in the execution of tasks entrusted to the Navy.