PR 08

The Foreign Secretary of India, Smt. Nirupama Rao, paid an official visit to Sri Lanka from 6 – 8 March 2010. On 7th March 2010, she called on His Excellency President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who also hosted a lunch in her honour. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka, Hon. Rohitha Bogollagama, also received the Foreign Secretary. The Foreign Secretary also met other senior officials of the Government of Sri Lanka, including the Senior Advisor to the President Hon’ble Basil Rajapaksa, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga, Foreign Secretary Romesh Jayasinghe, Treasury Secretary P.B. Jayasundera and Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal. In addition, she also met representatives of leading political parties, including Tamil and Muslim parties.

During her meeting with the President of Sri Lanka, the Foreign Secretary congratulated the President on his electoral victory and underlined that the elimination of terrorism and holding of elections provided Sri Lanka with a historic opportunity to initiate a process of political reconciliation where all communities in Sri Lanka can live in peace and harmony. The President appreciated India’s substantial assistance for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Northern and Eastern Sri Lanka and for the resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons. In particular, the extension of US$ 425 million as Lines of Credit for railway projects in Northern Sri Lanka was welcomed. The President mentioned that around 70,000 idPs remained in the camps, many of their own volition. The Foreign Secretary welcomed the relaxation of movement restrictions on idPs, but also expressed the hope that the resettlement process could be expedited, especially in Killinochchi and Mullaithivu, so that the idPs could resume normal lives in their original places of habitation. She conveyed that India looked forward to opening a Consulate General in Jaffna. The Foreign Secretary noted that the October 2008 Joint Statement of Fishing Arrangements had led to a decrease in incidents of apprehension of Indian fishermen and reiterated the importance of strictly adhering to this understanding. It was also agreed to convene a meeting of the Joint Working Group on Fishing to discuss issues related to fishermen on both sides.

During her discussions with the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister and other senior officials of the Foreign Office, The Foreign Minister thanked India for its generous assistance towards the ongoing rehabilitation, resettlement and reconstruction activities in northern Sri Lanka. The Foreign Secretary assured the Government of Sri Lanka of Government of India’s intention to continue supporting the task of development and reconstruction in northern and eastern Sri Lanka. In this context, she announced India’s support for housing projects to be taken up in the Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu districts for the benefit of the idPs. This will include setting up temporary shelters, repairing and rehabilitating damaged houses and building new houses. Government of India has also sanctioned the supply of 55 buses to various educational, social and cultural organizations and locally elected bodies in northern, eastern and central Sri Lanka with a view to supporting the transportation sector and strengthening connectivity in these areas. Foreign Secretary also indicated that additional Lines of Credit are being considered for railways projects in Northern Sri Lanka. The Foreign Minister also thanked India for its strong support to Sri Lanka during the latter’s chairmanship of SAARC.

Cultural engagement and the preservation of shared heritage have always figured as a high priority in India-Sri Lanka relations. In this context, Foreign Secretary Smt. Nirupama Rao announced that India had decided to participate fully in the setting up of the International Buddhist Museum in the Dalada Maligawa Complex. Work to set up the Indian gallery will be commenced soon under the direction of the National Museum of India. Foreign Secretary also announced that India would assist the restoration of the famous Thiruketheshwaram Temple in Mannar. A team from the Archeological Survey of India and the College of Architecture in Mahaballipuram will visit Sri Lanka to take up this work.

The India-Sri Lanka Foundation is a unique inter-governmental mechanism that has provided crucial support to and helped catalyze a number of initiatives taken by civil society in the area of art, culture, education, human resource development, training, etc. Foreign Secretary announced Government of India’s decision to enhance its contribution to the corpus of the Foundation by another India Rupees 15 million (approximately SLR 38 million) as a one-time grant. This announcement was warmly welcomed by her interlocutors.

During her visit, Foreign Secretary also inaugurated the Sri Lanka-India Centre for English Language Training in Peradeniya, Kandy on 7th March. The Centre has been set up with the assistance of the Government of India in collaboration with the well- known English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad and is meant to support the Sri Lankan Presidential Initiative for English as a Life Skill. The Centre has a state-of-the-art digital language laboratory and has already trained over 4,000 teachers. In her remarks at the inauguration, Foreign Secretary expressed her happiness at participating in an initiative that was aimed at the empowerment of the ordinary people of Sri Lanka