text: As depicted in the five photographs below, Dr. Perera perhaps became the first disabled person in Sri Lanka to be recognised in Sri Lanka for his outstanding voluntary contributions to the community – to the promotion and establishment of Accessibility to the Built environment, enhancing safety and social inclusion with empowerment of people with all abilities.
  Perera has aggressively promoted in Sri Lanka the concept of Social Inclusion for All with the Vision: Accessible Sri Lanka focusing on built environments that does not marginalise or cause discrimination against people on the grounds of inevitable diversity in ability and campaigned against arbitrary categorisation of people.
  Undeterred by his personal adversity, playing eight different roles over 17 consecutive years for the promotion of Accessibility Rights in Sri Lanka, he was recognised and appreciated in 2016 for his outstanding voluntary contributions to the community – please see below.
  First, in September 2016, he was named the "Sri Lankan of the Year 2016" under the category of Unsung Hero; and then on the UN Day in October 2016 he was presented with the APEX award by the United Nations Association of Sri Lanka.