General Convocation of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University 2020
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General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University witnessed the crowning moment of achievement of the students of the 32nd Intake (04 and 05-year degree programmes), 33rd Intake (04-year degree programmes) and 34th Intake (03-year degree programmes) at KDU General Convocation 2020, held on 17th, 18th and 19thof January 2021 at the BMICH.
Fulfilling the requirement of producing tri-service officers who are not only skilled but also well informed in the defence sciences and management, the third Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, General Sir John Kotelawala donated his personal property of 48 acres in Kandawala Estate in 1980, inclusive of its picturesque landscape and all movable and immovable property, to establish a tri-service academy.
Thereafter, giving new life to the nation and striving under a new vision, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence Academy was initiated under the Parliamentary Act No. 61of 1981with the noble intention of producingyoung officers armed with discipline and knowledge to the motherland.
This task became a reality due to the intense effort of the then Commander of the Army Lieutenant General J.E.D. Perera VSV. General Sir John KotelawalaDefence Academy then became the centre of Defence Services Training, and as a result, by the year 1988, this Defence Academy received the status of conferring degrees to the tri-service personnel studying at this prestigious institution. Subsequently, the government understood the qualitative development the Defence Academy had achieved during the two & half decades and renamed it as General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, in 2007, uplifting Sri Lankan tri-service officer education to be on a par with that ofits international counterparts. At present, this university has obtained world recognition and is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities and the International Association of Universities.
With 40 years of reputation in the international realm, going beyond the restriction of offering degrees to only military personnel, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University broadened its scope and opened its doors to qualified civil students in 2009 to realise their dream of obtaining a degree in a disciplined environment on a par with that of a local or international university.
While at present, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University has 6132 in-house undergraduates, both cadets and day-scholars, 1379 graduands fromall faculties were conferred with degrees at this year’s convocation by General Gerard Hector de Silva (Retired) RWP VSV USP ndc, the Chancellor of the University.
Five PhD Graduands, 263 Master’s Graduands and Postgraduate Diploma holders from the Faculty of Graduate Studies, and 1111 Bachelor’s Degree holders from different faculties of KDU were among the 1361graduands who received parchments at this year’s convocation. O/85418 2Lt RMTGP Rathnayaka, NRL 3975 SLtVSPalihawadanaand 12142 FgOff RGSDGamagewere awarded as the best Cadet Officers from the Army, Navy and Air Force respectively. The sword of Honour for the Best All-Round Performance of Intake 33 was awarded to O/85418 2LtRMTGP Rathnayaka. His Excellency Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka graced the Seventh Session of the convocation as the Chief Guest.