Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

T.T. Ranjith de Silva, RWP, RSP, USP, psc was a Sri Lankan army general. He served as Security Forces Commander – Eastern Province and

District Secretary A Government Agent (GA) or a District Secretary is a Sri Lankan civil servant of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service appointed by the central government to govern a certain district of the country. The GA is the administrative head of public servic ...

Trincomalee District Trincomalee District ( ta, திருக்கோணமலை மாவட்டம் ''Tirukōṇamalai Māvaṭṭam;'' si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය දිස්ත්‍රික්කය ''Trikuṇāmalaya distrikkaya'') is one ...

. He is known for leading the defence of the Sri Lanka Army garrison in

Pooneryn Poonakary ( ta, பூநகரி, translit=Pūnakari; si, පූනෙරිය, translit=Pūneriya),is a tamil village strategically important village in the northern province of Sri Lanka situated just below the Jaffna Peninsula. A fort w ...

during the

Battle of Pooneryn The Battle of Pooneryn (LTTE code-named ''Operation Thavalai Paachchal (Frog Leap)''), was a battle between the militant Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers) and the Sri Lankan military during the Sri Lankan Civil War for ...

. Silva received his education at

Dharmapala Vidyalaya Dharmapala Vidyalaya, Pannipitiya, established in 1942 on land owned by Anagarika Dharmapala, is the largest mixed school in Sri Lanka with about 8000 students and 600 academic staff. It is a public school and provides primary and secondary educ ...

and joined the Sri Lanka Army in 1972 as a cadet officer. Having completed his officer training at the

Sri Lanka Military Academy The Sri Lanka Military Academy () (SLMA or SLMA Diyatalawa), commonly known simply as Diyatalawa, is the Sri Lanka Army's training centre where officer cadets are trained for getting commission. It is located in the garrison town of Diyatalaw ...

, he was commissioned into the

Sri Lanka Light Infantry The Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLLI) is the oldest regiment in the Sri Lanka Army and the oldest infantry regiment in the army. It is made up of ten regular battalions and five volunteer battalions, and is headquartered at the Panagoda Cantonment ...

as a

Second Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...

in the Regular Force. In January 1991, he was appointed commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, Sri Lanka Light Infantry and that year attended the advanced infantry officers course at the

United States Army Infantry School The United States Army Infantry School is a school located at Fort Benning, Georgia that is dedicated to training infantrymen for service in the United States Army. Organization The school is made up of the following components: * 197th Infant ...

at Fort Benning. The 1st Battalion, Sri Lanka Light Infantry was stationed at

when the Pooneryn garrison was attacked by the

LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...

on 11 November 1993. With the defense perimeter breached, and the battalion headquarters of the 3rd Battalion, Gajaba Regiment over run and the two T-54A main battle tanks in the garrison captured; Major Ranjith de Silva lead the remaining troops in a desperate defense around the battalion headquarters of the 1st Sri Lanka Light Infantry until reinforcements arrived three days later. He received a

field promotion A battlefield promotion (or field promotion) is an advancement in military rank that occurs while deployed in combat. A standard field promotion is advancement from current rank to the next higher rank; a "jump-step" promotion allows the recipient ...

for preventing the complete fall of the garrison to

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

. He served as the Centre Commandant of the Sri Lanka Light Infantry.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:de Silva, Ranjith Year of birth missing (living people) Sri Lankan Buddhists Sri Lankan major generals Sinhalese military personnel Alumni of Dharmapala Vidyalaya Living people Sri Lanka Light Infantry officers