A Ranaviru commemorative flower

President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday proposed the naming of Sri Lanka’s version of the famous Poppy flower to honour the valiant soldiers who laid down their lives for the Motherland.

Addressing the Ranaviru Pranama celebration to pay tribute to the Security Forces at the Parliament grounds in Jayawardhanapura, Kotte the President said the time has come for a flower unique to our country to be named to commemorate war heroes who laid down their lives for the Motherland so that they would be remembered by future generations as long as that flower blooms.

After the Second World War the Poppy flower is used as a commemorative flower to honour those who sacrified their lives during the war.