Sri Lanka Army’s newest contingent of 243 professionally-trained Army personnel in the Combat Convoy Company (CCC), well-prepared to serve in the United Nations (UN) Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), left the country for Mali on April 21.
General Shavendra Silva, Chief of Defence Staff, Commander of the Army and Head of the National Operations Centre for Prevention of Covid-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO) together with a few senior officers was at the airport to see the Sri Lankan CCC comprised 212 Officers and Other Ranks, representing 12 Regiments of the Army, off to the landlocked West African country.
At first, the Commander at the airport spoke to Lieutenant Colonel Dinesh Bulathsinhala, Commanding Officer in the Mali-bound CCC, Major L Udagedara, 2nd in Command of the CCC and members of the CCC.
General Shavendra Silva shared a few thoughts with them and extended his best wishes to the CCC at the airport after a brief military formality before boarding process commenced.
Earlier on April 10, the Mali-bound CCC presented a formal military salute to the Commander of the Army at the Institute of peacekeeping Support Operations Training Sri Lanka (IPSOTSL) premises at Kukuleganga.
The CCC includes Army Officers and Other Ranks of the Gajaba Regiment (GR), the majority in the contingent as well as members of the Sri Lanka Army Service Corps (SLASC), Sri Lanka Armoured Corps (SLAC), Sri Lanka Engineers (SLE), Sri Lanka Signal Corps (SLSC), Corps of Engineer Services (CES), Mechanized Infantry Regiment (MIR), Sri Lanka Army Ordnance Corps (SLAOC), Sri Lanka Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (SLEME), Sri Lanka Corps of Military (SLCMP), Sri Lanka Army Medical Corps (SLAMC) and Sri Lanka Army General Service Corps (SLAGSC).
A group of 31 Army personnel, belonging to the same CCC are expected to leave after a few days due to logistic requirements. In the meantime, 240 members of the CCC troops (Phase II) already serving Mali having completed their peacekeeping roles will return home soon under two phases.
