Opened with fanfare, Police Hospital idles

The Police Hospital that was inaugurated by President Mahinda Rajapaksa with much fanfare in Kundasale last August remains unutilised till today, the Retired Police Officers’ Society and the Central Province Police Welfare Society allege.The hospital was constructed on more than one-and-half acres of land costing some Rs. 80 million and consists of an Out Patients’ Department (OPD), in-patient facilities, a dental surgery as well as laboratory facilities.

The Rs. 80 million for its construction was borne by the Sri Lanka Police Welfare Society. Although when the hospital was inaugurated, the President promised that it would be fully operational within two months, six months later it is still lying unutilised. The Retired Police Officers’ Society alleges that some senior officers have sabotaged the operation of the hospital and are attempting to turn the place into a holiday bungalow for themselves, given the fact that it is situated in a picturesque location. The delay in getting the hospital into operation is making policemen injured in the north and east as well as retired policemen to come all the way to the Police Hospital in Colombo to get the necessary treatment.

As transporting injured men from the conflict areas to Kandy is much quicker, having this hospital in operation will be a great boon to them to get timely medical care, they say. The hospital is compartmentalised to treat senior police officers as well as those in the lower ranks.