The corps provides combat engineering, construction and other technical support to the Sri Lankan Army and civil authorities.

Engineers are able to conduct tasks including penetrating minefields, locating and disarming booby traps, purifying water and building roads and bridges to maintain lines of communications.

This attracted the attention of two prominent members of the Legislative Council, D. S. Senanayake and E. W. Perera, who raised the question as to why there should be racial[clarification needed] military units in the Island.

A military engineering unit was set up in May 1958 at Konduwattuan Camp in Ampara, this school was moved several times before been located at Thunkama in Embilipitiya where it is today.

In the recent years, the Corps of Sri Lanka Engineers have been deployed in many parts of the country in support of military operations against terrorists.