I am aware that the people of Mannar District have long felt they did not receive adequate attention in the past. However, this situation is gradually changing. Today, with the assistance of the Government of India, a new emergency treatment unit is being established. Quarters for doctors are being built. A children’s ward is being developed, said the Hon. Governor of the Northern Province, N. Vethanayahan.
The foundation-stone laying ceremony for the new Accident and Emergency Treatment Unit, to be constructed at Mannar District General Hospital with financial assistance of Rs. 600 million from the Government of India, was held today – on Wednesday 16 September 2026. The event was attended by the His Excellency the President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the Hon. Minister of Health Nalinda Jayatissa and the Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Santosh Jha, along with the Hon. Governor of the Northern Province, N. Vethanayahan.
Speaking at the event, the Governor further stated that this unit, to be built with the Rs. 600 million grant assistance from the Government of India, would be of great importance in providing swift and integrated medical services to the people during emergencies. On behalf of the people of Mannar District, he expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the people and Government of India, to the Hon. Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, and to the Indian High Commissioner representing them here, for this valuable assistance.
“Your Excellency the President, over the past two years during which you have led the country, we have felt that attention at the national level to the needs of the Northern Province has increased significantly. Our people also stand firmly behind the national programmes you have undertaken, including the eradication of corruption and narcotics. The leadership you have provided, placing the welfare and future of the country foremost, is truly immeasurable. At the same time, we are grateful for the special concern you have shown for our province, with the aim that the people of the North too may live a dignified life with rights and opportunities equal to those of the rest of the country’s people. Your continued insistence to foreign diplomats, international institutions including the World Bank, and development partners, that priority be given to the development needs of the Northern Province, is a clear testament to your concern for our people.”
“It is your approach of viewing the North not as a peripheral region of the country, but as a key part of the country’s overall progress, that I consider to be the foundation of the change we see today.”
The financial allocations received by the Northern Provincial Council have also increased considerably compared to the past. Last year, we effectively utilised 99 percent of the funds allocated to us. As an important recognition of this, for the first time in the history of the Northern Provincial Council, an Unqualified Opinion has been received from the Auditor General. This is not merely an administrative achievement. I also see it as proof that there exists in the North an administration ready to convert available funds into services for the people’s needs.
The same approach is evident in addressing the healthcare needs of Mannar District. Under the leadership of the President and with the contribution of the Hon. Minister of Health, Nalinda Jayatissa, we have continued to take action for the development of Mannar District General Hospital.
It was only after I personally visited this hospital and understood the needs there that steps were taken to allocate Rs. 236 million for the children’s ward and Rs. 242 million for the doctors’ quarters. In 2026, a total of Rs. 672 million has been allocated for the health sector of Mannar District alone.
I also wish to convey my special thanks, on behalf of the people of Mannar, to the Hon. Minister of Health, Nalinda Jayatissa, for appointing eight doctors for internal training at Mannar District Hospital. I hope this will help make Mannar Hospital an even stronger medical institution in the future.
In addition, the CT Scanner facility promised by the Minister of Health will also become available to the people of Mannar. All of these together will form a complete healthcare structure. Our objective is not merely to build a building, our goal is to create conditions under which the people of Mannar can receive quality medical services within their own district.
Let us all continue to work together to further strengthen the healthcare sector of Mannar District. May this foundation stone laid today soon rise as a modern medical facility, standing as a safeguard for the lives and well-being of thousands of our people, the Governor said.
