Vikum Liyanage

Lieutenant General H.L.V.M. Liyanage, widely known as Vikum Liyanage, is a Sri Lanka Army general. He is the current Commander of the Sri Lanka Army serving from 1 June 2022. Prior to become the army commander, he was the 59th Chief of Staff of the Army. On 1 June 2022, Liyanage assumed as the 24th Commander of Sri Lanka Army. Earlier, he served as the Commandant, Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force.

Early life
Liyanage attended Vijaya College, Matale, where he was reported to excel in athletics and hockey, and was described as a bright student, earning accolades for his college.

Military career
Liyanage as an Officer Cadet joined the Regular Force of the Sri Lanka Army on 27 October 1986 in the Regular Intake - 26 and followed basic military training at the prestigious Sri Lanka Military Academy at Diyatalawa and subsequently at the Pakistan Military Academy at Kakul. After successful completion of training, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Gajaba Regiment of the Sri Lanka Army on 23 July 1987.

He served as the second-in-command of the 10 Gajaba Regiment; he was the commanding officer of 8 Gajaba Regiment. He served as the sector commander of Operations Command (Colombo), acting brigade commanders of 225 and 553 Infantry Brigades; he served as the brigade commanders of 215, 542, 224, 221 and 623 infantry brigades. He was the division commander of 21 Division and also the commanders of the Security Forces Headquarters - West and Security Forces Headquarters - Central and later he served as the commandant of the Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force.

He has also served as director - psychological operations, director (doctrine and training) and director (operations and systems) in the Office of the Chief of Defence Staff (OCDS); adjutant - General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, staff officer - 2 (admin) - regimental centre of the Gajaba Regiment and staff officer 2 - directorate of staff duties at the Army HQ.

Personal life
Liyanage is a past pupil of Vijaya College, Matale. He is married to Janaki and the couple is blessed with a daughter and a son.

Awards and decorations
He has received some of the highest awards in the Sri Lankan armed forces, which includes the Rana Wickrama Padakkama and the Rana Sura Padakkama.