A meeting was held between President Ranil Wickremesinghe and visiting Indian Minister of External Affairs – Dr. S. Jaishankar today, where it was agreed upon to implement a joint program between Sri Lanka and India.
During the meeting, many political, economic and social issues as well as investment matters between the two countries had been discussed at length.
During this discussion, special attention was paid to the debt-restructuring program in Sri Lanka which had received a positive response from the Indian government, the Presidential Media Division (PMD) says.
India and Sri Lanka signed bilateral documents for the upward revision of ceilings prescribed in the High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP) framework agreement today. The agreement, first signed in May 2005, has doubled the individual project limit from Rs 300 to 600 million. The total HICDP funds will be doubled from Rs 5 billion 10 billion.
The President and Dr. Jaishankar also virtually declared open the Academy for Kandyan dancing in close proximity to the Dalada Maligawa in Kandy today, for which Indian PM – Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone during his visit in 2017. Further, 300 completed houses in Galle, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya (100 each) under Indian assistance were also declared open virtually.
The complete media release by the PMD is as follows :
During a meeting held between President Ranil Wickremesinghe and India’s Minister of External Affairs Dr S. Jaishankar, it was agreed upon to implement a joint program between Sri Lanka and India.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe warmly welcomed the Indian External Affairs Minister at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (20) where the duo engaged in cordial discussions.
Prior to the official meeting, President Wickremesinghe hosted the visiting Indian External Affairs Minister Dr Jaishankar for breakfast and tea at his official residence at Paget Road, Colombo.
In addition, in the official meeting held between the President and Indian Foreign Minister Dr S. Jaishankar, many political, economic and social issues as well as investment matters between the two countries were discussed at length.
During this discussion, special attention was paid to the debt-restructuring program in Sri Lanka which had received a positive response from the Indian government.
The Indian External Affairs Minister recalled that in 1991, during the tenure of former Indian Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao, India had to face an economic crisis similar to what Sri Lanka is currently facing. He added that the Indian Government overcame the crisis by pledging the government’s gold reserves.
Therefore, Dr Jaishankar said that India has a good understanding of the situation Sri Lanka is currently facing and said that the Indian government will provide all possible support to solve the current economic problems faced by Sri Lanka.
The bilateral agreement related to raising the limit of the High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP) implemented in Sri Lanka with the support of the Government of India was also signed during the meeting.
The Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Mr Mahinda Siriwardena, signed the agreement on behalf of Sri Lanka and the Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka HE Gopal Baglay signed on behalf of India.
This agreement guides many community development projects in Sri Lanka with the support of the Government of India.
This agreement related to community development projects in Sri Lanka was signed in May 2005. Its project limit was Rs. 300 million, which will now be doubled to Rs. 600 million by the agreement signed today.
Meanwhile, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka in 2017, the foundation stone was laid for the construction of an Academy for Kandyan dancing as a gift given to Sri Lanka by the Indian Government and its people. The Indian Foreign Minister also virtually declared open the academy, which was built near the historical Dalada Maligawa in Kandy.
The handing over of 300 completed houses in Galle, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya – (100 houses each) under the housing project implemented in Sri Lanka with the support of the Indian Government, was also done virtually by the President and the Indian External Affairs Minister.
In this project of 60,000 houses, 50,000 houses have been completed. The third phase of the project of 400 houses for the people of the upcountry estate sector is currently underway and over 3,300 houses built under it have already been completed and are ready to be handed over to the beneficiaries.
The handing over of houses built in Anuradhapura and Badulla districts under the “Model Village Housing Program” implemented with the support of the Government of India for low-income families in Sri Lanka, were also symbolically handed over to the beneficiaries.
Senior Advisor to the President on National Security and Presidential Chief of Staff Mr Sagala Ratnayake, President’s Secretary Mr Saman Ekanayake and other officials and a special Indian delegation attended the discussion.
The Committee on High Posts, which met recently in the Parliament under the patronage of the Prime Minister – Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, has given its approval for the appointment of 04 secretaries for ministries.
Accordingly, the following appointments have been approved :
Prof. K. T. M. Udayanga Hemapala – Secretary to the Ministry of Energy K.M.G.S.N. Kaluwewa – Secretary to the Ministry of Education, Higher Education, and Vocational Education S.M. Piyatissa – Secretary to the Ministry of Labor K.D.R. Olga – Secretary to the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs
A heated situation took place in Kimbulawala today (July 11) after officials of the Road Development Authority (RDA) attempted to remove several roadside food stalls in the area.
Several stalls were dismantled and loaded onto a lorry amid the strong objection of vendors.
Police had also arrived at the venue to control the situation.
Amid the heated situation, RDA officials had returned the loaded belongings to the vendors.
The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka today (July 11) granted leave to proceed with a Fundamental Rights petition filed by two women challenging the gender-based restriction preventing women from applying for the position of Station Master in Sri Lanka Railways.
The petition was taken up before a three-judge bench comprising Justices A.H.M.D. Nawaz, Priyantha Fernando, and Sampath Wijeratne.
Appearing on behalf of the petitioners, Attorney-at-Law Nuwan Bopage submitted that the Railways Department had issued a gazette notification dated June 13, calling for applications to fill 106 vacant Station Master positions.
However, the notification stipulated that only male applicants were eligible to apply.
The counsel for the petitioners argued that this constituted a violation of the petitioners’ fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 12(1) and 12(2) of the Constitution, which ensure equality before the law and prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender.
He further contended that the restriction also infringed upon the petitioners’ right to engage in employment of their choice.
Accordingly, the petitioners sought a declaration from the court that their fundamental rights had been violated and requested an order to remove the discriminatory provision in the said gazette notification, which limits eligibility to only male candidates.
After considering the facts presented, the Supreme Court granted leave to proceed with the petition and scheduled the plaint for hearing on August 27.
(adaderana.lk)
(This story, originally published by adaderana.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)