Colombo District MP Dr. Harsha de Silva, founder of 1990 Suwaseriya Pre Hospital Care Ambulance Service said yesterday that it had been launched amidst various obstacles. He said so on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the ambulance service, which falls today (28).

Dr. de Silva emphasised that the infrastructure needed to be further developed to improve the service rendered by the ambulance service. Everyone had come to realise the value of the ambulance service due to the national health emergence, he added.

 “Today, this service is celebrating its fifth anniversary with great pride. I salute all, most importantly the almost 1,500 Suwaseriya staff led voluntarily by Dumindra Ratnayake and the Board along with CEO Sohan de Silva; they are totally committed to this service and responsible for having developed it to the present level. It is very important to further improve the service. Therefore, on this occasion of the fifth anniversary of this service, I urge the government to study the future needs and take steps to strengthen the infrastructure facilities of this service. It will definitely be a very important social investment.”

 On July 28, 2016, the 1990 Suwa Seriya pilot project was launched in Western and Southern Provinces using 88 ambulances, with a grant of US $ 7.6 million from India. Following the success of the pilot project, India again donated US $ 15.2 million to Sri Lanka to launch ambulance service countrywide. People of Sri Lanka are most grateful to the people of India and PM Modi for this gift. 

 At present, 297 ambulances of the 1990 Suwaseriya are operational throughout the country and is managed entirely at the expense of the government through the Suwa Seriya Foundation established by 1990 Suwa Seriya Foundation Act No. 18 of 2018.

 “The last five years have been five years of healing for the country. Such services do not exist even in more developed countries than ours. Anyone who has taken its service will definitely appreciate its importance. We have been successful in achieving almost all the targets set by us during these five years. I thank former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe for supporting me in launching this service, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for taking this service forward as planned, Minister of Health (Mrs.) Pavithra Wanniarachchi and State Minister of Health (Mrs.) Sudarshini Fernandopulle under whom the service is currently gazetted” he said.

 As of now 903,438 patients have been admitted to emergency and critical care through this service and the average time taken to reach a patient in any part of the country is just 14 minutes and 28 seconds.