India grants Rs. 600 million medical aid to Deniyaya Hospital

India is providing a grant of 600 million rupees to supply medical equipment to the Deniyaya Base Hospital.

High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Santosh Jha, and Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, Dr. Anil Jasinghe, signed the Memorandum of Understanding on 13 July 2026. The Minister of Health and Mass Media, Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, attended the signing ceremony.

The grant will equip the Deniyaya hospital, which the Sri Lankan government is relocating as a disaster preparedness measure because the current site sits in a disaster-prone area. The relocation project expects completion within three years, with the equipment delivery timed for the final construction phases.

This financial support comes as part of a 450-million-US-dollar assistance package announced by the Indian government for reconstruction and rehabilitation following Cyclone Ditwah.

The project covers high-tech medical gear for several critical departments, including general wards, High Dependency Units, emergency and isolation units, operating theatres, Out-Patient Departments, laboratories, the Central Sterile Supply Department, radiology, the blood bank, the physiotherapy unit, and the Special Care Baby Unit.

Health cooperation continues to serve as a major pillar in the development partnership between India and Sri Lanka. Past initiatives include the island-wide 1990 Suwa Seriya ambulance service, building a multi-specialty hospital in Dickoya, constructing a surgical unit at the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital, and upgrading the Jaffna Teaching Hospital alongside district hospitals in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu. Current joint projects involve building and equipping an Emergency Unit at the District General Hospital in Mannar and constructing a four-storey medical ward complex at the District General Hospital in Mullaitivu.