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India’s Constitution Day celebrations in SL
India’s ‘Constitution Day’ was observed through a series of events organized by the High Commission of India, Colombo on 26 November 2022. The special day marked the adoption of the Indian Constitution on 26 November 1949.
More than 200 school children from different parts of Sri Lanka enthusiastically participated in the Children’s Art Competition organized on 26 November 2022. Themes of the Competition such as ‘Incredible India’ and ‘Fundamental Duties’ were closely linked to India and her Constitution which helped the young and creative students from Sri Lanka develop a closer understanding of their civilizational partner, India. High Commissioner Gopal Baglay, who was the Chief Guest at the Competition, complimented families and teachers of the children for nurturing the talents of the next generation by encouraging them to participate in such competitions.
In order to instill a sense of environmental responsibility and care for future generations in the children, a unique workshop which gave training on creating beautiful environment-friendly art works from waste materials was also organized on the occasion. A tailor-made exhibition – ‘Making of Indian Constitution’ – gave the pictorial history and background of events and milestones that made the world’s largest written Constitution a reality.
The High Commissioner and officials of the High Commission paid floral tributes to Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, main architect of the Indian Constitution on Constitution Day, 2022. Earlier, preamble of the Constitution which professes guiding principles of India was read out by the High Commissioner and Indian officials in Sri Lanka.
Following the adoption of the Indian Constitution on 26 November 1949, it came into effect on 26 January 1950. Indians across the world celebrate ‘Republic Day’ every year with great fervor to mark this momentous occasion. The Indian Constitution, which has drawn from best practices and procedures of various countries, has been the main anchor and basis for decision making for policy makers of India.
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First capacity-building program under NCGG – SLIDA MoU concludes successfully
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the National Centre for Good Governance of India (NCGG) and Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA) was signed during the State Visit of President of Sri Lanka, H.E. Anura Kumara Disanayaka to India in December 2024 for training and capacity building of 1500 Sri Lankan civil service officers over a period of five years.
The first program under the MoU was successfully held at NCGG from 21 April to 02 May 2025, and was attended by 41 officers. Based on the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, the theme of the program was ‘digitization in governance’. The program featured a series of sessions focused on key areas such as digital service delivery, digital public infrastructure, financial inclusion through digital payments, and innovations in public grievance redressal systems. Senior officials and domain experts delivered presentations on flagship Indian initiatives in the digital domain, including Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, e-Office, GeM, Aadhaar, PM Gati Shakti, among others.
At an interaction session with participants in the inaugural program organized on 08 May 2025 at SLIDA, the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, H.E. Santosh Jha underscored that capacity building is an important pillar of the development cooperation between the two countries, with Sri Lanka being among the largest recipients of scholarships and capacity building initiatives offered by India. He highlighted that, demonstrating India’s continued commitment to enhancing capacity-building opportunities for Sri Lankans, Prime Minister of India had announced additional training avenues to 700 Sri Lankan citizens annually during his recent State visit. In that context, the High Commissioner said that the participants in the first NCGG-SLIDA programme also represented the first set of Sri Lankan nationals to receive training as part of the significantly enhanced capacity-building endeavour of India that will now benefit 1000 Sri Lankans annually.
The interaction session was also attended by Secretary, Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, Mr S. Aloka Bandara; Director General of SLIDA, Mr A.V. Janadara; senior officials and faculty members of SLIDA; among others.
In view of the highly positive feedback from the participants in the inaugural NCGG-SLIDA program, based on request from SLIDA, a second program on the same theme under the MoU is now being planned for another batch of around 40 officers for early June 2025.
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First capacity-building program under NCGG – SLIDA MoU concludes successfully
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