General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

H.L.V.M. Liyanage, widely known as Vikum Liyanage, is a retired

Sri Lanka Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; ...

officer. He was the

Commander of the Sri Lanka Army The Commander of the Army () is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is Lieutenant General Lasantha Rodrigo. The post's precursor was known as Commander of the Ceylon Defence Force. Se ...

from 1 June 2022 to 31 December 2024. Prior to become the army commander, he was the 59th Chief of Staff of the Army. On 1 June 2022, Liyanage assumed as the 24th Commander of Sri Lanka Army. Earlier, he served as the Commandant,

Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force The Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force (SLAVF) is the active-duty volunteer reserve force of the Sri Lanka Army. The SLAVF is separate from the Regular Force (known as the ''regular army'') which consists of personal who are professional soldier ...

Early life

Liyanage attended

Vijaya College, Matale Matale Vijaya College ( Sinhala: විජය විද්‍යාලය), or (VCM) is a "Buddhist College" situated in Matale city center, A9 highway main road. It is the oldest Buddhist college in Matale District. Vijaya College was found ...

, where he was reported to excel in athletics and hockey, and was described as a bright student, earning accolades for his college.

Military career

Liyanage as an Officer Cadet joined the Regular Force of the Sri Lanka Army on 27 October 1986 in the Regular Intake - 26 and followed basic military training at the prestigious

Sri Lanka Military Academy The Sri Lanka Military Academy () (SLMA or SLMA Diyatalawa), commonly known simply as Diyatalawa, is the oldest military academy in Sri Lanka, and trains commissioned officers for the Sri Lanka Army. It is located in the garrison town of Diyatal ...

Diyatalawa Diyatalawa (), (), meaning ) is a former garrison town in the central highlands of Sri Lanka, in the Badulla District of Uva Province. It is situated at an altitude of and has become a popular destination for local holiday makers. It is home ...

and subsequently at the

Pakistan Military Academy Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) is a military academy located nearby Kakul village in Abbottabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Established in October 1947, it is the only service academy in Pakistan that trains cadets to serve as army of ...

Kakul Kakul (Kakol) is a village situated in the Tehsil and District Abbottabad, at an elevation of 1300 metres, 5 km northeast of center of Abbottabad city near the Thandiani Hills. Abbottabad is a District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pa ...

. After successful completion of training, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the

Gajaba Regiment The Gajaba Regiment (GR) is an elite infantry regiment of the Sri Lankan Army. Formed on 14 October 1983 at the Saliyapura Camp in Anuradhapura, it is named after the famous Sinhalese King Gajabahu the First. It consists of 14 regular battali ...

of the

on 23 July 1987. He served as the second-in-command of the 10 Gajaba Regiment; he was the commanding officer of 8 Gajaba Regiment. He served as the sector commander of Operations Command (Colombo), acting brigade commanders of 225 and 553 Infantry Brigades; he served as the brigade commanders of 215, 542, 224, 221 and 623 infantry brigades. He was the division commander of 21 Division and also the commanders of the Security Forces Headquarters - West and

Security Forces Headquarters - Central Security is protection from, or resilience against, potential harm (or other unwanted coercion). Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be persons and social groups, objects and institutions, ecosystems, or any other entity or phen ...

and later he served as the commandant of the

. He has also served as director - psychological operations, director (doctrine and training) and director (operations and systems) in the Office of the Chief of Defence Staff (OCDS); adjutant -

General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) ( Sinhala: ජෙනරාල් ශ්‍රිමත් ජෝන් කොතලාවල ආරක්ෂක විශ්ව විද්‍යාලය ''General Sir John Kotelawala'' ''Ar ...

, staff officer - 2 (admin) - regimental centre of the

and staff officer 2 - directorate of staff duties at the Army HQ.

Personal life

Liyanage is a past pupil of

. He is married to Janaki and the couple is blessed with a daughter and a son.

Awards and decorations

He has received some of the highest awards in the Sri Lankan armed forces, which include the

Rana Wickrama Padakkama The Rana Wickrama Padakkama (RWP, Combat Gallantry Medal) (Sinhala language, Sinhala: රණ වික්‍රම පදක්කම) is awarded to Sri Lankan military service personnel serving in both the regular- and volunteer forces as a rew ...

and the

Rana Sura Padakkama Rana Sura Padakkama (RSP, Combat Excellence Medal) ( Sinhala: රණ ශූර පදක්කම ''rana śūra padakkama'') is awarded to servicepersons of all ranks of the regular and volunteer forces of the Military of Sri Lanka for individual ...

Eastern Humanitarian Operations Medal ribbon bar

Northern Humanitarian Operations Medal ribbon bar

North and East Operations Medal ribbon bar

Riviresa Campaign Services Medal ribbon bar

50th Independence Anniversary Commemoration Medal

Sri Lanka Army 50th Anniversary Medal ribbon bar

Sri Lanka Armed Services Long Service Medal ribbon bar

References

External links

24th Commander of the Army, Lt Gen Vikum Liyanage Takes Reins
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liyanage, Vikum Commanders of the Sri Lanka Army Sri Lankan full generals Sinhalese military personnel Gajaba Regiment officers Living people Alumni of Vijaya College, Matale 1967 births