Wickramarachchi Indigenous Medical University, Gampaha has been inaugurated as the first university in Sri Lanka dedicated to Indigenous medical education, the Government Information Department today. It is the 16th university in the country to join the university system. The University was inaugurated today (01) under the patronage of Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga in line with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's Vistas of Prosperity Policy Framework . In 1929, Ayurveda Chakravarthy Pandit G.P. Wickramarachchi started the Wickramarachchi Ayurvedic Institute, Gampaha with 20 students. It was established in 1995 as the Yakkala Wickramarachchi Indigenous Medical Institute affiliated to the University of Kelaniya. It was proposed to turn this into a university in 2011. The name plate of the Gampaha Wickramarachchi Indigenous Medical University was unveiled today and the four storied building was also opened today. In addition to the existing full time courses, new postgraduate and part time courses are to be launched. Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Minister Ranatunga said that the inclusion of this Ayurvedic University in the Sri Lankan university system is a great achievement of the present government. The Minister said that it was gratifying to be able to fulfill the promise made by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in his Policy Statement to expand the university system, adding that the government has already taken steps to increase the number of students entering the university annually. “Universities are set to enroll 11,000 more students this year than in the previous year. The government expects to increase the number of such students annually in the future. The government is also paying special attention to provide the necessary infrastructure to the universities,” he said.