War heroes receive more benefits :

Making ends meet with Virusara

Major J. Rajakaruna

H.D. Sunil

K.V. Rathnakumara

H.C. Priyankara

SI Premasiri

Six months since inception, the Government initiated ‘Virusara’ project has so far issued nearly 16,000 cards to war heroes belonging to the Tri forces. It provides beneficiaries better access to many products and services, at discount prices, from State and private sector entities, including scholarships, tangible discounts on products and services, priority on services and other facilities.

As of today, the number of corporate sector entities that joined the project has increased to 55. These partner firms include a number of leading conglomerates and popular brands in both State and private sector industries, offering services in retail trade, travel and transport, education, insurance and finance, medical and telecommunication facilities. The cards are issued through the Ranaviru Seva Authority, the main Government entity responsible for the welfare of war heroes and their families.

The social recognition the war hero receives when using the card has a similar value to the financial benefits he or his family gets, said Major Jagath Rajakaruna of the Sri Lanka Army, a disabled officer of the sixth Battalion of the Ceylon Light Infantry Regiment. Major Rajakaruna is a recipient of the ‘Virusara’ card and said, more than him, life has been easy for his family, through the services provided.

As life goes on, and communities move on, the past tends to be only a memory. But to Coporal H.D. Sunil of the Sri Lanka Air Force, memories of the attacks that wounded him would never fade away. Th retired Corporal lives with 721 shrapnels still in his body. To a stranger he is a healthy well-built man. “I cannot stand in a queue for long, my legs become swollen and I have to rest for two or three days. As a result, my day to day work gets complicated,” he added.

Being a Virusara card recipient, he said, the financial assistance that he and his family receive gives them peace of mind, as they have had to depend solely on his pension before. “Certain companies have been very generous with discounts,” he added.

Leading Seaman H.C. Priyankara of the Sri Lanka Navy, now retired, still suffers from poor vision and severe pains during long distance travelling, having been injured in 1995 in Chalai in the Mullaitivu district. “Looking after the children and an aging parent on my pension was not easy. Now we get a good amount of discounts from certain shops, so that we could save some money,” he said.

The Army, the Navy and the Air Force are not the only forces that have to look after their disabled comrades. The Sri Lanka Police, since the early 1980s has been engaged in anti-terrorist operations that wounded thousands of their officers.

According to Sub Inspector B.G. Premasiri, nearly 925 Police officers are registered with the welfare division as disabled. Being a disabled Police officer himself, injured in Kiran, Batticaloa in 1985, SI Premasiri currently works in the Police welfare division.

“There are many officers of the Police as well as the Special Task Force who became disabled at a very young age. They and their families do need special assistance to get along with their lives. We believe the new card system will fill the gap,” he added.

Many of the wounded officers, based on medical approval, have returned to the service though not what they were engaged in before the injury. But being in service makes them feel worthwhile, according to Sub Warrant officer K.V. Rathnakumara of the Civil Defence Force. Injured while on duty as a ‘Gramara Sewaka’ in 1995 in Kosgama, Rathnakumara was quite satisfied with the services, particularly at a time his family needed assistance. With a view to expand the service, more ‘Virusara’ cards will be distributed among war heroes in the Polonnaruwa district at a special event to be held tomorrow (27) with President Maithripala Sirisena as the Chief Guest, Defence Ministry sources said.

Currently, there are nearly 300,000 disabled war heroes belonging to the Tri forces and the Police. According to the Defence Ministry, the plan is to issue the ‘Virusara’ privilege card to all disabled war heroes.

Yet, according to data available at the ‘Virusara’ project office, nearly one third of the cards are not being used. It is not known whether it is due to a lack of awareness or lack of enthusiasm. According to the coordinating officer of the ‘Virusara’ project, the Defence Ministry, together with the Ranaviru Seva Authority has started to examine the reasons in order to ensure that all are benefitted equally.

On the other hand,a lack of awareness among the staff of service providers, have put war heroes in difficult positions. Many war heroes have complained to the Defence Ministry about unpleasant incidents at supermarkets, government hospitals and other public places, he said.

“This is a new concept in the traditional welfare measures of security forces. It is a flexible process that aims at providing maximum benefits to war heroes,” he added.

(DY)