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“When I was in the army...”
“I joined the Ceylon Royal Artillery in 1943 during World War II and trained at Sandy Bay, Trincomalee. As a gunner I was trained in searchlight operations at Closenberg Bay in Trincomalee.”

These are the memories of a World War II veteran Piyasena Balasuriya of Galtotamulla, off Yakkala. This old soldier is still strong in limb and heart at four and half score years.

A cheerful personality, Balasuriya recalls many wartime stories such as how two Japanese submarines had attacked the oil tanks at Trincomalee and set fire to them. After this, the British Naval authorities put up an iron mesh around the vulnerable point of the bay. Thereafter no such submarine onslaughts were encountered, he says.

He also recalled the story of a shark that was trained by the British Navy to act as a 'submarine' to guard the ship 'Queen Mary' that was berthed there. The sailors forged a friendship with the shark. So much so that they used to take joy-rides on its back!

Once he, along with some of his comrades, were put through a physical endurance test at Boralanda in the uplands of Diyatalawa as part of their training, in preparation for selection to serve in the Burma Front of the 8th Army. During the training exercise, he had accidentally fallen down and sustained a fracture. Because of this injury he was disqualified from serving in the Burma Front, much to his regret.

After the turbulent years of World War II ended, he was demobilized in April 1948 after serving for 4 1/2 years as gunner. In 1949, he joined the Ceylon Police Force as a constable. He retired in 1969 as a 2nd Class Police Constable. While in retirement he was employed in private security services.

When Queen Elizabeth II visited Ceylon in 1954, he had the distinction of being in the escort party that took her on her trip from Colombo to Nuwara Eliya. Today he leads a quiet life, and has time to enjoy his passion for music.

From his boyhood, while studying at his village school in Nelungama, he had a flair for music and dancing which talents he still possesses. He is a fine sarpina player and played the organ in the Royal Artillery, and the bugle in the police as well.
Script and pic by Gamini G. Punchihewa

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