Colombo, Sept. 16 -- Sri Lanka President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Wednesday laid the foundation stone for a new two-storey Accident and Emergency Unit at the District General Hospital in Mannar, a project supported by an Indian grant of SLR 600 million, the Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka said.

Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha and Sri Lankan Minister of Health and Mass Media Nalinda Jayatissa were also present at the foundation stone-laying ceremony.

The project, supported through the Indian grant, will also provide the unit with essential medical equipment to strengthen emergency healthcare services at the hospital.

The facility is aimed at ensuring timely emergency care during the critical "golden hour", the I...