IMPHAL, SEPTEMBER 30 | EKHON: Ukhrul district on Wednesday received five Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances and 500 solar street lights under a ₹2.23-crore Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
The project was initiated by Ram Muivah, MLA of the 44-Ukhrul Assembly constituency, and is being implemented by Ukhrul Football Club (Ukhrul FC) in association with North East Power Infra.
The facilities were inaugurated at the Community Hall of Imphal International Airport in the presence of AAI officials, Muivah and other stakeholders. The ambulance keys and solar-light facilities were handed over to the beneficiaries following the inauguration.
Chipemi Keishing, Director, AAI, Imphal Airport, said the project was aimed at addressing two key requirements in the district — emergency healthcare and public lighting.
“Today the launching programme is about the launching of five advanced life-saving ambulances and 500 solar lamps for the district of Ukhrul,” Keishing said.
He said the project was taken up following an initiative by Muivah and supported under AAI’s CSR programme.
According to the official address delivered at the programme, AAI has undertaken 23 CSR projects in Manipur since 2016, with a cumulative sanctioned value of about ₹21.83 crore. The projects have covered healthcare, education, sports, sanitation, community development and infrastructure.
Muivah said the solar-light component was conceived after his visits to interior areas of Ukhrul, where residents had raised concerns over the lack of adequate lighting after sunset.
He referred to villages including Khayang, Khayang Phungtha, Roni, Ronshak and Sahamphung SDO headquarters.
“One statement that stayed with me was, ‘When the sun sets we feel we are blind’,” he said.
Muivah said the remark prompted him to approach the AAI Chairman for CSR assistance for solar street lights.
The proposal for ambulances, he said, arose from the recurring need for emergency transportation in the district. He said he had incurred substantial expenditure on hiring ambulances for bereaved families and others requiring emergency assistance.
“That was how I approached AAI for assistance both for Solar street lights and Ambulance,” he said.
He also acknowledged the support of Vumlunmang Vualnam, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, in taking the proposal forward.
Keishing said AAI’s CSR interventions in Manipur extended across sectors including healthcare, education, sports and community infrastructure.
He referred to other projects, including a ₹1.5-crore community hall in Churachandpur and a turf-ground project.
The present initiative follows an earlier AAI-supported sports infrastructure project in Ukhrul. In August 2023, a synthetic football turf at Langdang village was inaugurated under AAI’s CSR programme at an estimated cost of ₹1.35 crore. Ukhrul FC was entrusted with its maintenance.everybody.
Khareithan Phungchamnao, Executive Director of Ukhrul FC, said the organisation would ensure accountability in implementing the project.
“Whatever resources that we receive from AAI in Ukhrul District, with strong commitment we’ll make sure that it will not go in vain but make it a result-oriented project,” he said.
The official AAI address stressed that the ambulances and solar street lights should be properly utilised and maintained to ensure that the CSR intervention continues to benefit the intended communities.
The five ALS ambulances are expected to strengthen emergency transportation in the district, while the solar street lights are intended to improve illumination of public spaces and facilitate movement after dark.
The project now enters its operational phase, with the implementing agencies and local stakeholders responsible for the upkeep and continued functioning of the facilities.
