AJITH C. S. PERERA
CHARTERED CHEMIST
BSc.(Honours), MSc.(Analytical Chemistry), Hon.Ph.D.
FRSC.(Lond.), FIChem.(Cey.), FIQA.(Lond.)
A life about to blossom with two international careers in Chemistry and in Cricket was thwarted with the fall of a way side tree on his moving car in Colombo to leave in 1992 young Ajith C. S. Perera instantaneously a paraplegic for life.
A product from the University of Colombo, he is academically and professionally well qualified from here and in England.
He is a Chartered Analytical Chemist by Profession and a former Senior Manager in pharmaceutical manufacturing industry. He is a FELLOW of many a reputed International Body, including the prestigious Royal Society of Chemistry London.
In 1992 November he gained National honour in being appointed to the six-member test-match-panel of Cricket Umpires of Sri Lanka.
Unhesitatingly and in the greater interest of the country, he has bounced back to be an inspirational leader of a laudable voluntary mission.
He play simultaneously different productive roles using his remaining assets and skills - higher education, wide knowledge and practical experience - as a disability activist, a writer, author, speaker, presenter. He is also the Founder and the Chief Executive of ‘IDIRIYA’.
Several Organisations have already benefited from his services as a widely experienced accessibility advisor with proven competence.
He was also instrumental in persuading and promoting the Sri Lanka Standards Institution to establish for the first time in March 2007 a Sri Lankan standard for design in building construction taking into serious consideration the ‘diversity in ability’ of people.
In July 2009 and then again in April 2011, Dr. Perera appeared in person on his wheelchair and presented facts at the Supreme Court to justify about the poor accessibility provided at public buildings through non-compliance with design specifications and laws in force. He persuaded successfully the Court to issue several orders, in the larger interest of the society and the country, making it mandatory for ALL Building Parts of NEW Public Buildings to be made ‘inclusive’ complying with standards and to bring ‘punitive repercussions’ for violators.