Commander of the Navy, Chief Guest at the Indian Naval Academy, POP
 

Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy, Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne was the Chief Guest and the Presiding Officer at the Passing Out Parade of the Spring Term 2017 batch, at the Indian Naval Academy (INA) in Ezhimala, held on an impressive note today (27).

This turned out to be the very first instance that a foreign Naval Chief became the Chief Guest and Presiding Officer at a Passing Out Parade of the Indian Naval Academy, signifying the warm and friendly ties between the navies of India and Sri Lanka and making it one of the  momentous events in the history of Indian Naval Academy.

272 cadets of the Indian Navy passed out today at the most graceful ceremony in their naval career. This also included 66 Coast Guard cadets and two foreign cadets each from Tanzania and Benin. The passing out cadets belonged to four different courses of Spring Term 2017, viz., 92nd Indian Naval Academy Course (BTech), 92nd Indian Naval Academy Course (MSc), 23rd Naval Orientation Course (Extended) and 24th Naval Orientation Course (Regular).  

Vice Admiral Wijegunaratne, following the ceremonial review, awarded medals to nine meritorious cadets.

Speaking on the occasion, the Commander of the Navy expressed his sincere thanks to the Chief of Naval Staff of the Indian Navy, Admiral Sunil Lanba for extending an invitation to grace this significant event of the INA being the Chief Guest and  Presiding Officer. In his address, he congratulated the passing out cadets and urged them to constantly challenge their physical and mental limits to be a successful naval officer.

He also highlighted the importance of inculcating the qualities of patriotism, professionalism, honesty and fairness in becoming a respected leader in the future. Vice Admiral Wijegunaratne also urged the prospective leaders of the Indian Navy and Coast Guard to perform their duty with utmost honour and dedication while preserving the time honoured naval customs.

Vice Admiral AR Karve, AVSM, Flag Officer Commanding–in–Chief, Southern Naval Command, Vice Admiral SV Bhokare, AVSM, YSM, NM, Commandant, INA, Prof. Anil D Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), New Delhi and other senior officers were present on the momentous occasion.

Naval cooperation between India and Sri Lanka has been traditionally strong on wide range of spheres including operational interactions through bilateral exercises, port calls, capacity building and augmentation initiatives and training partnerships. The Advance Offshore Patrol Vessels (AOPVs) are presently in their final stages of construction for the Sri Lankan Navy at M/s Goa Shipyard Limited. Indian Naval Ship (INS) Darshak, a survey ship, also recently successfully completed a two-month survey deployment off Sri Lanka.

As a young Lieutenant, the present Commander of the Navy took part in the famous operation 'Pawan', conducted during the IPKF period in the Kilali lagoon, being a channel pilot to assist Indian Marine Commandos in 1987. He was awarded RWP for his act of gallantry and his counterparts Lieutenant Arvind Singh and Lieutenant A Verma were awarded Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) and Vir Chakra (VC) respectively.

Vice Admiral Wijegunaratne did his Sub Lieutenant Technical Course, specialization course in Anti-Submarine Warfare and National Defence College Course in India. He was also the Defence Adviser at the Sri Lankan High Commission in New Delhi from November 2000 to April 2004.

Address of the Commander of the Navy at the POP of the Cadet Officers of the Indian Navy

Image Courtesy: Indian Navy