Ministry of Defence (Sri Lanka)

The Ministry of Defence and Urban Development is the Sri Lankan government ministry responsible for implementation of government defence policy and the headquarters of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces.

The Ministry of Defence states that its principal objectives are the formulation, co-ordination and the execution of policies in relation to the national security. With the end of the Cold War, the MOD does not foresee any short-term conventional military threat, the main threat to Sri Lanka having been the now-defunct terrorist organization, the LTTE). The Ministry of Defence also manages day to day running of the armed forces, contingency planning and defence procurement.

The National Security Council of Sri Lanka is the executive body of the Sri Lankan government that is charged with the maintenance of national security with authority to direct the Sri Lankan military and Police. The Minister of Defence and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence and the Chief of the Defence Staff are permanent members of the National Security Council.

History
With Ceylon gaining independence in 1948, the Ministry of External Affairs and Defence was formed to administer the country's armed forces and formulate defence and foreign policy. The Prime Minister was also the Minister of Defence and External Affairs, and was supported by a Parliamentary Secretary for Defence and External Affairs who was a member of Parliament.

In 1977, J.R Jayawardena's government adapted two separate ministries, forming the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were formed. Since then many presidents retained the portfolio of Minister of Defence under him/her self, except for a few brief periods. In 1999 the National Security Council was established removing the direct control the military from the deputy Minister of Defence.

In 2011, the ministry was renamed Ministry of Defence and Urban Development.

Senior officials

 * Minister of Defence, Public Security, Law & Order &mdash; President of Sri Lanka His Excellency Mahinda Rajapakse
 * Permanent Secretary &mdash; Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, RWP, RSP, psc, GR
 * Chief of the Defence Staff &mdash; Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonatilake, RWP & BAR, VSV, USP, ndc, psc, SLAF is the Commander of the Air Force

Objectives

 * Maintenance of internal security and national defence of Sri Lanka.
 * Implementation and maintenance of the Prevention of Terrorism Act No. 48 of 1979 as amended by the Act No. 10 of 1982.
 * Maintenance of the Commonwealth War Memorials and the War Graves, on behalf of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
 * Supervision and maintenance of the establishment matters of the three services and the Kotalawala Defence Academy.
 * Supervision and maintenance of the establishment matters of the National Cadets Corps.
 * In pursuance of the above objectives the Ministry of Defence provides policy directives and guidelines to the Departments functioning under it.

Key Functions

 * Maintenance of the defence in Sri Lanka.
 * Administration of the Directorate of Foreign Intelligence & the Directorate of Internal Intelligence.
 * Maintenance of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University.
 * Administration of the Sri Lanka Institute of Strategic Studies.
 * Administration of the Language Training Institute at Kotmale.
 * Administration of the National Cadet Corps.
 * Administration of the Department of Civil Defence (formerly the Home Guard Service)

Departments that come under the Ministry of Defence

 * Sri Lanka Army
 * Sri Lanka Navy
 * Sri Lanka Air Force
 * Sri Lanka Police Service
 * State Intelligence Service


 * General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University
 * Defence Services Command and Staff College
 * National Cadet Corps


 * Department of Immigration & Emigration
 * Department of Registration of Persons
 * Department of Civil Defence (formerly the Home Guard Service)
 * The National Dangerous Drugs Control Board
 * Ranaviru Seva Authority (Veteran's Welfare Authority)

Ministers attached to the Ministry of Defence
Since the establishment of the MoD in 1978 the portfolio of Minister of Defence was held by the President of Sri Lanka, except for a few brief periods. However a minister oversaw activities of the MoD and the armed forces. Incomplete
 * Mrvyn Kularatne - Deputy Minister of defence
 * T.B. Werapitiya (former DIG) - Minister of Internal Security
 * Lalith Athulathmudali - Minister of National Security
 * General Ranjan Wijeratne - Minister of State for defence
 * D.B Wijetunga - Minister of State for defence
 * General Anuruddha Ratwatte - Deputy Minister of defence
 * Ratnasiri Wickremanayake - Deputy Minister of defence
 * Thilak Marapana - Minister of defence

Permanent Secretaries
Incomplete
 * Colonel C. A. Dharmapala, ED, CLI
 * General Deshamanya D. S. Attygalle, LVO, SLAC
 * General S. Cyril Ranatunge, VSV, SLAC
 * Lieutenant General Hamilton Wanasinghe, VSV, SLA
 * Chandananda de Silva, SLAS
 * Austin Fernando, SLAS
 * Cyril Herath (former IGP)
 * Major General Asoka Jayewardene
 * Lieutenant Colonel Gotabhaya Rajapaksa