General Shavendra Silva, WWV, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP (Sinhala: ශවේන්ද්‍ර සිල්වා, Tamil: ஷவேந்திர சில்வா) is a retired Sri Lanka Army general who served as Chief of Defence Staff, the head of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2024.

During the Sri Lankan civil war he gained fame as the General Officer Commanding of the elite 58 Division.

He was wounded in the operation and later served as the head of the Presidential Security Army Unit at the President's House, Colombo.

[11] Major Silva was appointed commanding officer of the 8th battalion, Gajaba Regiment in August 1995 and served till January 1996.

In July 1996, he was appointed commanding officer of the 5th (Volunteer) battalion, Gajaba Regiment and served till September 1996, when he was appointed commanding officer of the 1st battalion, Gajaba Regiment and served till September 1998 having been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.

Thereafter, he took command of the 58 Division, playing a key role in the military capturing several former LTTE strongholds including the Mannar Rice Bowl, Vedithalathivu, Nachchikuda, Mulangavil, Devils Point, Pooneryn, Kilinochchi, Paranthan, Elephant Pass, Dharmapuram, Vishvamadu, Suvandipuram, Thevipuram Puthukudirippu, Puthumathalan, Wellamullu vaikkal and the last stretch of LTTE held Karayamulli vaikkal in the mangroves of Nanthikandal lagoon in the Mullaithivu district.

[11] In 2010, he took up position as Sri Lanka Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Headquarters with the rank of Ambassador in 2010, serving till December 2014.

[20] In January 2020, General Silva was appointed as Acting Chief of Defence Staff, while concurrently serving as Army Commander.

[22] With his term as Army Commander ending on 31 May 2022, General Silva was confirmed as Chief of Defence Staff with effect from 1 June 2022.

[32][30][31] With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva was appointed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to head the National Operation Centre for Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO) a Presidential Task Force tasked with containing the COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka.

[33] General Shavendra Silva is the most decorated military personal in Sri Lankan army history with over 20 medal to his name.