– Minister Bimal Ratnayake
At a media briefing was held yesterday under the patronage of the Minister of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation, Bimal Ratnayake, in the ministry auditorium regarding the fatal bus accident that occurred in the Garadiella area on the 11th and the subsequent situation, as well as the measures taken by the government in relation to it.
“Compensation for those who lost their lives in the road accident ”
The Minister stated:
“In this accident, twenty-three passengers died and fifty-four were injured. The injured have been admitted to hospitals in Gampola, Peradeniya, Nuwara Eliya, Nawalapitiya, and Kotmale. Also, there were heroes among the passengers. They acted to save others before themselves. The local people made a great effort to save lives from dawn. The hospital staff performed their duties beyond expectation. The Sri Lanka Transport Board depot staff and the police acted with high intervention. We appreciate the brotherhood shown by the people of Sri Lanka in such a great tragedy. The silver lining we saw amidst all these disasters was that brotherhood.”
The Minister said that the government has paid close attention to this accident and that as a government, they are working to do the utmost justice to the passengers who lost their lives and were injured as a result.
Further commenting, the Minister said, “One million rupees each has been allocated from the President’s Fund for the twenty-three people who lost their lives. These funds were credited today to the Divisional Secretaries in the areas where they lived. Steps are being taken to quickly identify the rightful guardians and provide them with these funds. We are working to provide financial assistance from the President’s Fund based on medical reports to all patients who require short-term and long-term treatment. I personally intervened to quickly provide the necessary surgical equipment and medical devices for special surgeries for the patients. Discussions are being held with insurance companies to provide the compensation that can be given.
Although a price cannot be placed on someone’s death, steps are being taken to provide the sum of twenty-five thousand rupees according to the policy of the Transport Board. The Sri Lanka Cricket Board and the cricket team have come forward to provide long-term assistance and relief based on clear criteria for the patients and children.
This accident is the biggest tragedy that has occurred on a road in our country in recent history. Comprehensive investigations are being conducted in several aspects regarding this. The Department of Motor Traffic, the Sri Lanka Police, the Road Development Authority, and the Sri Lanka Transport Board are conducting separate investigations for this purpose. Based on the observations of the passengers and the statement of the conductor, the overall report will be prepared and the true situation will be presented quickly. Therefore, we request all parties to refrain from expressing distorted opinions.
Let us take this tragedy, which shocked the entire country, as an opportunity to ensure life safety, road safety, and traffic safety in the future,” he added.
Secretary of the Ministry of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation, Kapila C. K. Perera, Chairman of the Road Development Authority, T. Pasakaran, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Transport Board, Jeewaka Prasanna Purasinha, Chairman of the National Transport Commission, P. A. Chandrapala, and Director of the Traffic Control and Road Safety Division of the Sri Lanka Police, Senior Superintendent of Police Manoj Ranagala, and many other officials joined this occasion and addressed the media regarding their respective sectors.
Among these comments, it was stated that the driver of the bus was a healthy person with very good conduct, that no clues regarding technical defects in the bus have been found so far in the investigations, that the road is also in proper condition without any shortcomings and meets the required standards, and that proper inspections of the vehicle had been carried out before operation.
Suranga Lakmal
