News
PCR lab built at cost of USD 5 mn at BIA idling!
Unexplained sudden abolition of mandatory PCR testing on arrival makes Cabinet approved project irrelevant
By Shamindra Ferdinando
A state-of- the- art PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) testing facility built at a cost of USD 5 mn at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) recently is idling due to a government decision to do away with the requirement for the inbound passengers to undergo Covid-19 testing.
The AASL- Hospinorm PCR Laboratory has the capacity to conduct approximately 7,000 tests a day.
Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella and Aviation Minister Prasanna Ranatunga declared opened the facility located outside the BIA on 23 Sept.
Aviation Minister Ranatunga is on record as having said that the opening of the new facility will end corrupt practices in the mandatory hotel quarantine process.
Sources said that though a private company wholly in the project, it is owned by the Airport and Aviation Services Sri Lanka Private Ltd. The laboratory is managed by Airport and Aviation Services under a two-year management contract. The lab charges $ 40 for a PCR test for travelers. A sizeable share of that fee goes to the investor.
Responding to a query, sources said that the Aviation Ministry obtained cabinet approval for the project in July, 2021. Having swiftly handled the process, the Aviation Ministry paved the way for the setting up of the operation by late September, sources said.
These sources said that the fate that had befallen quite unexpectedly on the private investment had placed the ministries concerned at an embarrassing position.
The disruption of the BIA project occurred close on the heels of the Association of Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes (APHNH) seeking an opportunity to partner the government in similar ventures. APHNH secretary Dr. Sunil Ratnapriya, in a letter addressed to the health Minister of underscored the private sector laboratories performed approximately 60% of the total PCR workload of the country, and almost all the PCR requirements of the tourism industry, BOI (Board of Investment) and quarantine centres in hotels, with results being released within 24-36 hours.
Dr. Ratnapriya, a one-time GMOA firebrand expressed surprise at the government reaching an agreement with a foreign investor at their expense. The statement quoted Dr. Ratnapriya as having requested that the government prioritize and consider local healthcare investors as a partner in efforts such as this, given the expertise and international standards upheld by our member hospitals over the past two years.
With the abolition of mandatory PCR testing, the possibility of infected passengers, both locals and foreigners entering the society couldn’t be ruled out. Earlier, all those arriving at the BIA regardless of their vaccination status were subjected to hotel quarantine, in some instances at exorbitant room rates. At one point, the hotel quarantine got quite controversial due to shady deals, sources pointed out recalling no person less than Commander of the Army General Shavendra Silva had to intervene in January this year.
Addressing hoteliers in his capacity as the Head of the National Operation Centre for Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO), Gen. Silva acknowledged there had been attempts to extort money from hotels assigned the quarantine task. Sources said that it was the responsibility of the government to prevent unscrupulous elements from exploiting both foreigners and locals arriving in the country.
The Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake stated that the government has taken a policy decision to continue, without interruption, “School Nutrition Programme’’ aimed at reducing anemia among schoolchildren, which is being implemented with the assistance of the World Food Programme.
He made these remarks on Wednesday (23), during a discussion held at the Presidential Secretariat with representatives from relevant Ministries and government institutions involved in the programme, along with officials from the World Food Programme, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Pathfinder Foundation.
The school meal programme, aligned with the government’s initiative to provide nutritious lunch to primary school students in districts identified as having high levels of malnutrition, specifically targets the reduction of iron deficiency among schoolchildren. The initiative is jointly coordinated by the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, Provincial Councils, the Food Promotion Board and the Partnership Secretariat for the World Food Programme Cooperation. The government has allocated Rs. 32 billion for this programme for the current year.
A pilot project is currently being implemented in four selected districts. Based on a formal health and nutrition study assessing the outcomes of this pilot project, there are plans to expand the programme island-wide. The study aims to determine the extent to which iron deficiency among schoolchildren can be reduced through this initiative.
As part of the programme, fortified rice enriched with iron and folic acid will be included in the school meals to specifically address anemia among students.
The World Food Programme, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Gateway Foundation and the Pathfinder Foundation have pledged their continued support for this effort.
Present at the occasion were Secretary to the Prime Minister Pradeep Saputhanthri, Senior Additional Secretary to the President Kapila Janaka Bandara, Secretary to the Ministry of Education Nalaka Kaluwewa, Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Mass Media Dr. Anil Jasinghe, and Secretary to the Ministry of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment Malarmathy Gangatharan, along with other government officials and representatives from partner organizations.
[PMD]
Latest News
Heat index at ‘Caution level’ at some places in Northern, North-central and Eastern provinces and Monaragala, Hambantota districts
Warm Weather Advisory
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre of the Department of Meteorology at 3.30 p.m. 23 April 2025, valid for 24 April 2025
The public are warned that the Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in Northern, North-central and Eastern provinces and Monaragala, Hambantota districts
The Heat Index Forecast is calculated by using relative humidity and maximum temperature and this is the condition that is felt on your body. This is not the forecast of maximum temperature. It is generated by the Department of Meteorology for the next day period and prepared by using global numerical weather prediction model data.
Effect of the heat index on human body is mentioned in the above table and it is prepared on the advice of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.
ACTION REQUIRED
Job sites: Stay hydrated and takes breaks in the shade as often as possible.
Indoors: Check up on the elderly and the sick.
Vehicles: Never leave children unattended.
Outdoors: Limit strenuous outdoor activities, find shade and stay hydrated. Dress: Wear lightweight and white or light-colored clothing.
Note:
In addition, please refer to advisories issued by the Disaster Preparedness & Response Division, Ministry of Health in this regard as well. For further clarifications please contact 011-7446491.
Retired SSP Shani Abeysekera, serving the Police Department again, has been appointed to the committee headed by Senior DIG Asanka Karawita, tasked with studying the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) report on the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage.
The other members of the team are DIG, CID, Director, CID and Director Terrorism Investigation Division (TID)
Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) leader Udaya Gammanpila yesterday said that Abeysekera had been one of the law enforcement officers whose conduct raised eyebrows over the years as regards the failure on the part of the CID to thwart the Easter Sunday attacks.
The National Police Commission approved the reappointment of SSP Abeysekera on contractual basis for one year, with effect from 10 Oct., 2024.
Abeysekera backed Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s presidential election campaign as a member of the retired police collective.
“School Nutrition Programme’’to continue, without interruption
Heat index at ‘Caution level’ at some places in Northern, North-central and Eastern provinces and Monaragala, Hambantota districts
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