Baglay in meetings with Wickramanayaka to fast track flagship grant projects
COLOMBO –Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Gopal Baglay, held two separate meetings with Vidura Wickramanayaka, Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs on Tuesday (Nov 1) on the implementation of a US$ 15 million grant by the Government of India for the promotion of Buddhist ties and functioning of Jaffna Cultural Centre (JCC).
The Indian High Commission in a statement announcing the meetings on Wednesday (2), noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a special grant of US$ 15 million for the promotion of bilateral Buddhist ties at the Virtual Bilateral Summit on September 26, 2020 and the MOU governing the grant was signed on March 28, 2022, during the visit of External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar to Colombo.
The statement said the High Commissioner and the minister had agreed to immediately undertake steps for the quick implementation of jointly-identified priority projects under the grant in numerous areas pertaining to Buddhism. Specific action points regarding installation of solar power facilities in places of worship and Pirivenas, spread across different parts of Sri Lanka had also identified.
The meeting on JCC focused on the establishment of an enabling joint-framework to make the state-of-the-art facility available for regular use by the public. “This glowing example of India-Sri Lanka development partnership, which has been constructed under a Government of India grant of more than US$ 11 million, consists of multiple facilities such as a museum of two floors, a latest theatre style auditorium for more than 600 people, a 11-storeyed learning tower, and a public square which could also act as an amphitheater, among others,” the statement elaborated.
It said the two meetings underscore the Indian Government’s abiding commitment to bring about a palpable impact to the daily lives of the people of Sri Lanka through the implementation of people-centric grant projects and that the projects are guided by the demands and needs of all sections of Sri Lankan society and the priorities of the Government of Sri Lanka.
The statement also noted that to date, India has been associated with the implementation of more than 85 grant projects in Sri Lanka and that the latest endeavours include the Sri Lanka Unique Digital Identity Project.
Secretary, Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Somarathna Vidanapathirana, First Secretary (Development Cooperation), Eldos Mathew Punnoose and other officials representing the Governments of India and Sri Lanka also attended Tuesday’s meetings.
-ENCL
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