Gamini Kularatne
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Corporal Gamini Kularatne PWV, SLSR (S/34553) ( si, ගාමිණී කුලරත්න; 4 September 1966 – 14 July 1991) (commonly known as ''Hasalaka Gamini'' or ''Hasalaka Sri Lankan Hero'') was a
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
n soldier. He was the first recipient of the
Parama Weera Vibhushanaya __NOTOC__ The Parama Weera Vibhushanaya (PWV) (Sinhala language, Sinhala: පරම වීර වීභූෂණය ''parama vīra vibhūṣaṇaya''; Tamil language, Tamil: பரம வீர விபுஷனைய) is Sri Lanka's highest Mil ...
, the highest award for gallantry awarded by the
Sri Lanka Army ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம் , image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army , start_date ...
for his actions during the Elephant Pass Siege, in which he was killed.


Early life

Gamini Kularatne was the second son of a family of four brothers and a sister. He obtained his primary education at Ranasinghe Premadasa Madhya Maha Vidyalaya at Hasalaka (farming hamlet in the salubrious
Kandy District Kandy District ( si, මහනුවර දිස්ත්‍රික්කය, ta, கண்டி மாவட்டம்) is a district of the Central Province of Sri Lanka. Its area is 1906.3 km². Administrative divisions Ethnic ...
of Sri Lanka). Some claim that he was a survivor of the Aranthalawa Massacre on 2 June 1987 as Mahiyangane Dhammajothi Thero. After seeing the brutality of the
Tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus '' Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on u ...
massacre he pleaded with the chief Thero and left robes to join the
Sri Lanka Army ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம் , image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army , start_date ...
on 27 August 1987 with the blessings of his father S.G Babanis and mother S.G Juliet.


Death

On the night of 10 July 1991 over 5000
LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
fighters surrounded the 600 strong army garrison located at
Elephant Pass Elephant Pass, (, si, අලිමංකඩ Alimankada) Northern Province, Sri Lanka is located in the gateway of Jaffna Peninsula. It lies about 340 km north from capital. It has an important military base and used to be the island's larg ...
. The base was known as the gateway to the northern Jaffna Peninsula. Enlisted to the Sri Lankan Army
Sinha Regiment The Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment (SLSR) ( Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා සිංහ රෙජිමේන්තුව ''Śrī Laṃkā Sinha Rejimēnthuva'') is an infantry regiment of the Sri Lanka Army; it is the second oldest infantry r ...
Sixth
Battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
as a
Rifleman A rifleman is an infantry soldier armed with a rifling, rifled long gun. Although the rifleman role had its origin with 16th century hand cannoneers and 17th century musketeers, the term originated in the 18th century with the introduction o ...
,
Lance Corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal, and is typically the lowest non-commissioned officer (NCO), usually equi ...
Gamini Kularatne, along with the rest of his regiment, was tasked with watching for possible
LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
infiltrators. As dusk fell the LTTE launched several human wave attacks. Flanked by hundreds of armed fighters, they surrounded the Army's fortifications. As the battle ensued a previously unknown armored bulldozer resembling a tank advanced on the military installation. Equipped with a
machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
and containing a haul of arms and
ammunition Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...
s inside, the armored bulldozer rumbled towards the southern entrance of the camp. Lance Corporal Kularatne recognized the heavily armored rolling weapon would be able to break through the garrison's defenses. Above all the fall of Elephant Pass to the enemy would be catastrophic and counterproductive at a national level. Although the LTTE began pounding the Army camp with heavy
mortars Mortar may refer to: * Mortar (weapon), an indirect-fire infantry weapon * Mortar (masonry), a material used to fill the gaps between blocks and bind them together * Mortar and pestle, a tool pair used to crush or grind * Mortar, Bihar, a villag ...
and weapons to the cries of injured and dying soldiers amidst deafening explosions, all eyes were still centered on the enemy's approaching bulldozer. Lance Corporal Kularatne, holding two
grenades A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade gene ...
in his hands, dashed out towards the oncoming bulldozer tank, clambered up the tank's ladder and tossed the two grenades inside it, disregarding the LTTE bullets hitting him. The grenades disabled the bulldozer amidst bursts of fire accompanied by a series of explosions. Lance Corporal Kularatne was flung to the ground and lay motionless. As the siege of Elephant Pass Army Camp was broken, one of the most ferocious battles in Sri Lanka's modern history ended. The camp had been saved from being overrun by the LTTE in part by Corporal Kularatne's bravery. In recognition of his act of gallantry Lance Corporal Gamini Kularatne was promoted to the rank of
Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...
posthumously and honored with the award of "
Parama Weera Vibhushanaya __NOTOC__ The Parama Weera Vibhushanaya (PWV) (Sinhala language, Sinhala: පරම වීර වීභූෂණය ''parama vīra vibhūṣaṇaya''; Tamil language, Tamil: பரம வீர விபுஷனைய) is Sri Lanka's highest Mil ...
" on 10 October 1991, the highest gallantry award in Sri Lanka for the first time in the history of Sri Lanka Army. Later he came to be known as the ''Hasalaka Weeraya'' (Hasalaka Hero)


Memorial

After the war was over, a memorial to Corporal Gamini was later set up in Elephant Pass with the remains of the bulldozer he destroyed. The memorial, as well as the destroyed vehicle, can be seen on the A9 road on the way to Jaffna. A statement made by Dambara Amila Thero in March, 2015 in recommending the removal of this memorial sparked massive public outcry and widespread condemnation. The Sri Lankan
Baila Baila (also known as bayila; from the Portuguese verb ''bailar'', meaning ''to dance'') is a form of music, popular in Sri Lanka and among Goan Catholics. The genre originated centuries ago among the Portuguese Burghers and Sri Lankan Kaffirs. B ...
singer Dhanapala Udawatta sang "Hasalaka Gamini", a song tribute to the famous war hero.


See also

*
Awards and decorations of the military of Sri Lanka The Sri Lankan Armed Forces award medals and their associated ribbon bars in recognition of various levels of service, personal accomplishments and commemorative events while a regular- or volunteer serviceperson is a member of the Sri Lanka Arm ...
*
Elephant Pass Elephant Pass, (, si, අලිමංකඩ Alimankada) Northern Province, Sri Lanka is located in the gateway of Jaffna Peninsula. It lies about 340 km north from capital. It has an important military base and used to be the island's larg ...


References


Hasalaka Gamini Kularatne - Supreme Sacrifice


* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20060208004800/http://202.51.141.138/news_archive_July.htm Sri Lankan Army Website Article
Created by using Blogspot Article that released under the GNU Free Documentation License
* Army, Sri Lanka. (1st Edition - October 1999). ''"50 YEARS ON" - 1949-1999'',
Sri Lanka Army ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம் , image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army , start_date ...
.


External links


Sri Lanka Army

Ministry of Defence : Sri Lanka

Media Center for National Security : Sri Lanka

SPUR
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kularatne, Gamini 1966 births 1991 deaths Sinha Regiment soldiers Sri Lankan military personnel killed in action Recipients of the Parama Weera Vibhushanaya Sinhalese military personnel