Opinion
Nirangani Perera – Angel of Love and Service
Appreciation
It is said that some people are angels sent from heaven to make our lives amazing. To make us strong, honourable, and decent human beings. They care about us and possess the inexplicable knack of being able to lift us up, reminding us of the best, even when we are going through the worst. They show us the importance of loving ourselves, loving life, and appreciating what we have been blessed with.
They inspire in us the virtues of discipline, sincerity, fairness, and friendship. Nirangani Perera, Nira to all of us, was one such angel. She was undeniably influential in making the many who worked with me at Delmege Marketing the wholesome human beings we are today. We were all sisters/brothers to her, and she felt responsible and accountable for our wellbeing, as an elder sister would feel and do.
Perhaps heaven needed more angels and God sent for Nira. She was plucked from us in the most shocking manner. Most of us who knew her would insist that what she had to endure before passing was not merited, especially for this wonderful human being. She was strong and independent and would not have wanted to be dependent on anyone under any circumstances. But I believe, if Nira was here to interpret, she’d have said ‘it is what I had to go through to earn the rewards that await me in heaven’. Such was her faith.
I recall her admonishing my conduct whenever I erred on the harmful or incorrect path. Both on the job and in my personal life, she’d pulled me out of situations which would have led to dire consequences or serious damage to my reputation and social standing. At work, she was the glue that held the team together. She understood the strengths/weaknesses and the sensitivities of each one and was able to guide/charm us to work together as the cordial and most productive team/family we eventually became. She was fearless and commanded the respect of the whole Team; from our genial boss Mr Nihal Wijeratne down to the Peon/Messenger. Even Mr Wijeratne was not spared from her opinions and recommendations. She was mostly instrumental in creating one of the most pleasant and cheerful working environments I’ve experienced in my long career; I miss those times and the colleagues of that time to this day, though gladly, the team still stays in touch, despite being spread across different parts of the world.
Etched in my mind are the moments she used to storm into my cubicle to caution me from smoking within (every time I had a cup of tea, which were many and frequent!!). Nonstop guidance flowed on matters like which agents I should trust or not, what I should or shouldn’t have said or been saying in different circumstances, how careful I should be when riding/driving, how important it was to go for the novena at Fatima Church nearby, et al.
For me, who I’m today and the good place I’m at today are partly due to the care and guidance of Nira; and my colleagues will say the same. She will be sorely missed by all of us, but we acknowledge we have to let her go; that is life. Our hearts broke with sadness when she left us, but we know she’s gone to a better place. We take comfort in knowing that we’d soon meet her. For now, we hold her in our hearts and cherish the memories of her in our minds. May God grant her eternal rest and bliss.
SUNIL
LAKSHMANASINGHE
on behalf of the Delmege Consumer Marketing Team
The proposed expansion of the Kelani Valley railway line has prompted the squatters to demolish the buildings and the above photograph depicts the ad-hoc manner in which a building in the heart of Nugegoda town (No 39 Poorwarama Road) has been haphazardly demolished posing a risk to the general public. Residents say that the live electric wire has not been disconnected and the half-demolished structure is on the verge of collapse, causing inevitable fatal damages.
Over to the Railway Department, Kotte Municipality Ceylon Electricity Board and the Nugegoda Police.
Athula Ranasinghe,
Nugegoda.
On July 19, 1989, United Airlines Flight 232 departed Denver, Colorado for Chicago, Illinois. The forecast weather was fine. Unfortunately, engine no. 2 – the middle engine in the tail of the three-engined McDonnell Douglas DC 10 – suffered an explosive failure of the fan disk, resulting in all three hydraulic system lines to the aircraft’s control surfaces being severed. This rendered the DC-10 uncontrollable except by the highly unorthodox use of differential thrust on the remaining two serviceable engines mounted on the wings.
Consequently, the aircraft was forced to divert to Sioux City, Iowa to attempt an emergency crash landing. But the crew lost control at the last moment and the airplane crashed. Out of a total of 296 passengers and crew, 185 survived.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) declared after an investigation that besides the skill of the operating crew, one significant factor in the survival rate was that hospitals in proximity to the airport were experiencing a change of shifts and therefore able to co-opt the outgoing and incoming shift workers to take over the additional workload of attending to crash victims.
One wonders what would have happened if an overflying aircraft diverted to MRIA-Mattala, BIA-Colombo, Colombo International Airport Ratmalana (CIAR) or Palaly Airport, KKS during the doctors’ strike in the 24 hours starting March 12, 2025? Would the authorities have been able to cope? International airlines (over a hundred a day) are paying in dollars to overfly and file Sri Lankan airports as en route alternates (diversion airports).
Doctors in hospitals in the vicinity of the above-named international airports cannot be allowed to go on strike, and their services deemed essential. Even scheduled flights to those airports could be involved in an accident, with injured passengers at risk of not receiving prompt medical attention.
The civil aviation regulator in this country seems to be sitting fat, dumb, and happy, as we say in aviation.
Guwan Seeya
Plans to resurrect the Nanu Oya – Nuwara Eliya rail track are welcome. The magnificent views from the train have been described by H W Cave in his book The Ceylon Government Railway (1910):
‘The pass by which Nuwara Eliya is reached is one of the most exquisite things in Ceylon. In traversing its length, the line makes a further ascent of one thousand feet in six miles. The curves and windings necessary to accomplish this are the most intricate on the whole railway and frequently have a radius of only eighty feet. On the right side of the deep mountain gorge we ascend amongst the tea bushes of the Edinburgh estate, and at length emerge upon a road, which the line shares with the cart traffic for about a mile. In the depths of the defile flows the Nanuoya river, foaming amongst huge boulders of rock that have descended from the sides of the mountains, and bordered by tree ferns, innumerable and brilliant trees of the primeval forest which clothe the face of the heights. In this land of no seasons their stages of growth are denoted by the varying tints of scarlet, gold, crimson, sallow green, and most strikingly of all, a rich claret colour, the chief glory of the Keena tree’.
However, as in colonial times, the railway should be available for both tourists and locals so that splendid vista can be enjoyed by all.
Dr R P Fernando
Epsom,
UK
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