Speaker briefs on SL resettlement

speaker Chamal Rajapaksa briefed Indian President Pratibha Patil on the programme of resettlement, rehabilitation and restoration of livelihoods in the post-conflict phase during a meeting on August 2 at Rashtrapathi Bhavan, India.

Speaker Rajapaksa was in India with a delegation of Parliamentarians at the invitation of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar.

The Speaker was accompanied by Ministers Dinesh Gunawardena, W D J Seneviratne, Rishad Bathiudeen, Deputy Minister Muthu Sivalingam, Mps Rajiva Wijesinha, Malani Fonseka and Selvam Adaikkalanathan, Secretary General of Parliament Dhammika Kitulgoda and Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India Prasad Kariyawasam.

The official visit commenced on August 1 with the delegation paying respects to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. This was followed by visits to the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on the first day of the Monsoon Session of the Indian Parliament. Speaker Rajapaksa and the delegation were received by Lok Sabha Speaker and Rajya Sabha Chairman with official announcements in both Houses.

The delegation called on the Speaker of the Lok Sabha Meira Kumar, India Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari, Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and the Opposition Leader Sushma Swaraj.

The delegation also met members of the India-Sri Lanka Parliamentary Friendship Group in the Indian Parliament, several other MPs and Indian and foreign media personnel at the residence of the High Commissioner.

The delegation discussed with their counterparts the importance of regular interactions and visits to each other’s countries to share best practices and learn from each other.

The visit manifests the strengthening of relations between the two countries at all levels.