Farewell call on CP Governor and Chief Minister:

Sri Lanka, India ties at peak - HC

Work on the 150-bed base hospital at Dickoya, Hatton is progressing smoothly and the fully-equipped hospital would be handed over by August or September 2013, Indian High Commissioner Ashok K Kantha said.

The High Commissioner during a visit to the Central Province on April 22 and 23, paid farewell calls on Central Province Governor Tikiri Kobbekaduwa and Chief Minister Sarath Ekanayake and noted the strong and close bilateral relationship between India and Sri Lanka.

He highlighted various developmental projects being implemented in Sri Lanka, with particular reference to the Central Province, with Indian grant assistance, supplementing the various initiatives of the Sri Lanka government to uplift the standard of living of estate workers.

Kantha underlined that construction work at the 150-bed base hospital at Dickoya, Hatton, was progressing smoothly and that the fully-equipped hospital would be handed over by August/September 2013.

The Governor and the Chief Minister appreciated the Indian government's efforts to assist plantation workers in the Upcountry areas and thanked the Indian government for constructing the 150-bed hospital at Dickoya, setting up three Vocational Training Centres, providing CEWET and Mahatma Gandhi scholarships for higher education and also making available buses for improved access and connectivity in the estate areas.

They also commended the installation of the 16-foot Buddha statue in Sarnath style, from the Gupta period, at the entrance of the International Buddhist Museum and the efforts underway to set up the Indian Gallery at the International Buddhist Museum at Sri Dalada Maligawa.

The High Commissioner offered to gift books to the public library at Getambe in Peradeniya, set up by the Central Provincial Council and to have further discussions on collaborating with respect to setting up an Institute of Higher Studies in the Central Province.

Responding to concerns expressed by the two dignitaries regarding the two incidents involving assaults on Sri Lankan monks in Tamil Nadu, Kantha underlined that these were isolated incidents and did not reflect the strong people-to-people bonds that have been an integral part of the close historical, cultural and civilisational ties between the two countries.

He also conveyed that the state government of Tamil Nadu had taken immediate action to identify and prosecute the miscreants responsible for these incidents and that the Indian government, in consultation with state governments, has taken and will continue to take all possible measures to ensure the safety, security and well-being of Sri Lankan visitors to India, including to Tamil Nadu. The High Commissioner invited the Governor and the Chief Minister to visit India.