Indo-Sri Lankan talks: Treatment of Tamils, land connectivity, oil pipeline amongst key takeaways
12 min read
Express News Service
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe had wide-ranging bilateral discussions which embrace an oil pipeline, ferry connectivity, UPI, trade-in rupee, a doable land route and elevated air connectivity, amongst different issues.
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived in New Delhi a day earlier for the official go to, his first since taking over the highest job final 12 months after an financial meltdown compelled his predecessor to flee.
“Today we have adopted a vision document for our Economic Partnership. This vision is to strengthen the Maritime, Air, Energy and people-to-people connectivity between the people of both countries. The vision is to accelerate mutual cooperation in tourism, power, trade, higher education and skill development. This is the vision – of India’s long-term commitment towards Sri Lanka,” stated PM Modi.
“My visit to India has provided an opportunity to review our bilateral relationship, leverage the strength of geographical and civilizational links, reinforced trust and confidence for our future prosperity in the modern world,” Wickremesinghe stated.
PM Modi conveyed to President Wickremesinghe India’s expectations from Colombo to fulfil the aspirations of the Tamil group within the island nation and guarantee a lifetime of respect and dignity for it. He additionally sought a humane method from Sri Lanka over conflicts involving the island nation’s navy and fishermen from Tamil Nadu.
“We hope that Sri Lankan government will fulfil aspirations of the Tamils as this would drive the process of equality, justice and peace and fulfil the commitment to the 13th Amendment and conduct the Provincial Council Elections,” PM Modi added.
The Tamil group in Sri Lanka has been demanding the implementation of the thirteenth Amendment that gives for devolution of energy to it. The thirteenth Amendment had been introduced in after the Indo-Sri Lankan settlement of 1987.
This 12 months, India is celebrating its seventy fifth anniversary of diplomatic ties with Sri Lanka. Tamil nationals have been a local of the island nation for over 200 years now and to mark this, India has earmarked Rs 75 crore for initiatives that cater to the event programmes of the Tamil group.
Meanwhile, talks on the Economic and Technological Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) will start quickly.
The two leaders spoke about enhancing air connectivity and starting a passenger ferry service between Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu and KankeSanthurai in Sri Lanka.
“We have decided that the work of connecting the electricity grids between the two countries will be expedited. The feasibility study will be done for the petroleum pipeline between India and Sri Lanka. Apart from this, it was also decided to check the feasibility of a land bridge. Fintech connectivity will also increase with the agreement signed today to launch UPI in Sri Lanka,” PM Modi added.
ALSO READ | Sri Lankan president’s go to to India alerts rising financial and vitality ties
India offered crucial monetary and humanitarian help price over USD 4 billion to its neighbour, together with meals, drugs and gas, geared toward injecting much-needed stability as its bankrupt neighbour battled excellent whole debt of over USD 83 billion, of which USD 41.5 billion was international.
Earlier on Friday, President Ranil additionally had an interplay with industrialist Gautam Adani and so they held talks on port growth. “We had a dialogue round persevering with growth of the Colombo Port West Container Terminal, a 500 MW wind undertaking and increasing our renewal vitality experience to provide inexperienced hydrogen,’’ Adani stated after the assembly.
While modalities are but to be labored out for the initiatives which were spoken about, investments are an possibility that might be thought of as personal corporations are concerned in some initiatives.
Here is a listing of agreements on the pipeline between the neighbouring nations:
Maritime connectivity:
To cooperate within the growth of ports and logistics infrastructure at Colombo, Trincomalee and Kankesanthurai with an intention to consolidate regional logistics and delivery, as per mutual understanding.
To resume passenger ferry companies between Nagapattinam in India and Kankesanthurai in Sri Lanka and work in the direction of early resumption of ferry companies between Rameshwaram and Talaimannar, and different mutually agreed locations.
Air connectivity:
The resumption of flights between Jaffna and Chennai has enhanced people-to-people ties and agreed to additional increase it to Colombo in addition to discover connectivity between Chennai and Trincomalee, Batticaloa and different locations in Sri Lanka.
To encourage and strengthen funding and cooperation in civil aviation, together with augmentation of airport infrastructure at Palaly for larger financial advantages to the individuals.
III. Energy and Power connectivity:
MoU on cooperation in creating renewable vitality would develop Sri Lanka’s important renewable vitality potential, together with offshore wind and photo voltaic, thus enabling Sri Lanka to realize its goal of producing 70 per cent of energy necessities from renewable vitality sources by 2030.
To set up a high-capacity energy grid interconnection between India and Sri Lanka to allow bidirectional electrical energy commerce between Sri Lanka and different regional international locations, together with the BBIN international locations, which has the potential to not solely convey down the prices of electrical energy in Sri Lanka but in addition assist create a worthwhile and reliable supply of international alternate for Sri Lanka.
To expedite the implementation of the understanding reached on the Sampur Solar energy undertaking and LNG infrastructure, and discover cooperation in inexperienced hydrogen and inexperienced ammonia by means of the usage of modern applied sciences with an intention to extend the renewable vitality combine in energy technology of Sri Lanka.
Ongoing cooperation within the growth of Trincomalee Tank Farms is a mirrored image of our endeavour to develop mutually useful cooperation initiatives within the Trincomalee space and agreed to additional develop Trincomalee as a nationwide and regional hub of trade, vitality and financial exercise on the premise of mutual understanding.
To cooperate for the development of a multi-product petroleum pipeline from the Southern a part of India to Sri Lanka with an intention to make sure an inexpensive and dependable provide of vitality sources to Sri Lanka.
To undertake mutually agreed joint exploration and manufacturing of hydrocarbons in Sri Lanka’s offshore basins with an intention to develop Sri Lanka’s upstream petroleum sector.
IV. Trade, Economic and Financial Connectivity:
That salience of bilateral commerce and financial engagements was considerably demonstrated through the COVID-19 pandemic and financial disaster in Sri Lanka and agreed to facilitate mutual investments by means of, inter alia, coverage consistency, selling ease of doing enterprise and truthful remedy of one another’s buyers.
To facilitate investments from India within the divestment of Sri Lankan State-owned Enterprises and in manufacturing/financial zones in numerous sectors in Sri Lanka.
To undertake discussions on the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement with an intention to comprehensively improve bilateral commerce and investments in new and precedence areas.
The resolution to designate INR as forex for commerce settlements between the 2 international locations has cast stronger and mutually-beneficial business linkages and agreed to operationalise UPI-based digital funds for additional enhancing commerce and transactions between companies and customary individuals.
India’s fast digitalisation is a crucial force-multiplier for ongoing transformational modifications in India, each in financial growth and governance, and agreed to leverage India’s Digital Public Infrastructure in accordance with Sri Lanka’s necessities and priorities in the direction of efficient and environment friendly supply of citizen-centric companies to the individuals of Sri Lanka;
V. People-to-people Connectivity:
To promote consciousness and popularize India’s Buddhist circuit, and Ramayana path in addition to historic locations of Buddhist, Hindu and different non secular worship in Sri Lanka for enhancing tourism.
To discover cooperation between instructional establishments on each side together with by means of the institution of recent larger training and skilling campuses in Sri Lanka in accordance with Sri Lanka’s necessities and priorities.
To increase cooperation between analysis and tutorial institutes in areas of mutual pursuits corresponding to agriculture, aquaculture, IT, enterprise, finance and administration, well being and drugs, earth and marine sciences, oceanography, house purposes, in addition to historical past, tradition, languages, literature, non secular research and different humanities.
To set up land connectivity between Sri Lanka and India for creating land entry to the ports of Trincomalee and Colombo, propelling financial development and prosperity in each Sri Lanka and India, and additional consolidating the millennia-old relationship between the 2 international locations. A feasibility examine for such connectivity will probably be performed at an early date.
Both the leaders directed respective officers involved to expedite the realisation of this shared imaginative and prescient, which is not going to solely impart long-term route and important momentum to bilateral cooperation for development and prosperity in each international locations and within the wider area but in addition set the longer term route of a dynamic India-Sri Lanka relationship, based on enhanced mutual confidence and belief.
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe had wide-ranging bilateral discussions which embrace an oil pipeline, ferry connectivity, UPI, trade-in rupee, a doable land route and elevated air connectivity, amongst different issues.
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived in New Delhi a day earlier for the official go to, his first since taking over the highest job final 12 months after an financial meltdown compelled his predecessor to flee.
“Today we have adopted a vision document for our Economic Partnership. This vision is to strengthen the Maritime, Air, Energy and people-to-people connectivity between the people of both countries. The vision is to accelerate mutual cooperation in tourism, power, trade, higher education and skill development. This is the vision – of India’s long-term commitment towards Sri Lanka,” stated PM Modi.googletag.cmd.push(perform() googletag.show(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); );
“My visit to India has provided an opportunity to review our bilateral relationship, leverage the strength of geographical and civilizational links, reinforced trust and confidence for our future prosperity in the modern world,” Wickremesinghe stated.
PM Modi conveyed to President Wickremesinghe India’s expectations from Colombo to fulfil the aspirations of the Tamil group within the island nation and guarantee a lifetime of respect and dignity for it. He additionally sought a humane method from Sri Lanka over conflicts involving the island nation’s navy and fishermen from Tamil Nadu.
“We hope that Sri Lankan government will fulfil aspirations of the Tamils as this would drive the process of equality, justice and peace and fulfil the commitment to the 13th Amendment and conduct the Provincial Council Elections,” PM Modi added.
The Tamil group in Sri Lanka has been demanding the implementation of the thirteenth Amendment that gives for devolution of energy to it. The thirteenth Amendment had been introduced in after the Indo-Sri Lankan settlement of 1987.
This 12 months, India is celebrating its seventy fifth anniversary of diplomatic ties with Sri Lanka. Tamil nationals have been a local of the island nation for over 200 years now and to mark this, India has earmarked Rs 75 crore for initiatives that cater to the event programmes of the Tamil group.
Meanwhile, talks on the Economic and Technological Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) will start quickly.
The two leaders spoke about enhancing air connectivity and starting a passenger ferry service between Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu and KankeSanthurai in Sri Lanka.
“We have decided that the work of connecting the electricity grids between the two countries will be expedited. The feasibility study will be done for the petroleum pipeline between India and Sri Lanka. Apart from this, it was also decided to check the feasibility of a land bridge. Fintech connectivity will also increase with the agreement signed today to launch UPI in Sri Lanka,” PM Modi added.
ALSO READ | Sri Lankan president’s go to to India alerts rising financial and vitality ties
India offered crucial monetary and humanitarian help price over USD 4 billion to its neighbour, together with meals, drugs and gas, geared toward injecting much-needed stability as its bankrupt neighbour battled excellent whole debt of over USD 83 billion, of which USD 41.5 billion was international.
Earlier on Friday, President Ranil additionally had an interplay with industrialist Gautam Adani and so they held talks on port growth. “We had a dialogue round persevering with growth of the Colombo Port West Container Terminal, a 500 MW wind undertaking and increasing our renewal vitality experience to provide inexperienced hydrogen,’’ Adani stated after the assembly.
While modalities are but to be labored out for the initiatives which were spoken about, investments are an possibility that might be thought of as personal corporations are concerned in some initiatives.
Here is a listing of agreements on the pipeline between the neighbouring nations:
Maritime connectivity:
To cooperate within the growth of ports and logistics infrastructure at Colombo, Trincomalee and Kankesanthurai with an intention to consolidate regional logistics and delivery, as per mutual understanding.
To resume passenger ferry companies between Nagapattinam in India and Kankesanthurai in Sri Lanka and work in the direction of early resumption of ferry companies between Rameshwaram and Talaimannar, and different mutually agreed locations.Air connectivity:
The resumption of flights between Jaffna and Chennai has enhanced people-to-people ties and agreed to additional increase it to Colombo in addition to discover connectivity between Chennai and Trincomalee, Batticaloa and different locations in Sri Lanka.
To encourage and strengthen funding and cooperation in civil aviation, together with augmentation of airport infrastructure at Palaly for larger financial advantages to the individuals.III. Energy and Power connectivity:
MoU on cooperation in creating renewable vitality would develop Sri Lanka’s important renewable vitality potential, together with offshore wind and photo voltaic, thus enabling Sri Lanka to realize its goal of producing 70 per cent of energy necessities from renewable vitality sources by 2030.
To set up a high-capacity energy grid interconnection between India and Sri Lanka to allow bidirectional electrical energy commerce between Sri Lanka and different regional international locations, together with the BBIN international locations, which has the potential to not solely convey down the prices of electrical energy in Sri Lanka but in addition assist create a worthwhile and reliable supply of international alternate for Sri Lanka.
To expedite the implementation of the understanding reached on the Sampur Solar energy undertaking and LNG infrastructure, and discover cooperation in inexperienced hydrogen and inexperienced ammonia by means of the usage of modern applied sciences with an intention to extend the renewable vitality combine in energy technology of Sri Lanka.
Ongoing cooperation within the growth of Trincomalee Tank Farms is a mirrored image of our endeavour to develop mutually useful cooperation initiatives within the Trincomalee space and agreed to additional develop Trincomalee as a nationwide and regional hub of trade, vitality and financial exercise on the premise of mutual understanding.
To cooperate for the development of a multi-product petroleum pipeline from the Southern a part of India to Sri Lanka with an intention to make sure an inexpensive and dependable provide of vitality sources to Sri Lanka.
To undertake mutually agreed joint exploration and manufacturing of hydrocarbons in Sri Lanka’s offshore basins with an intention to develop Sri Lanka’s upstream petroleum sector.IV. Trade, Economic and Financial Connectivity:
That salience of bilateral commerce and financial engagements was considerably demonstrated through the COVID-19 pandemic and financial disaster in Sri Lanka and agreed to facilitate mutual investments by means of, inter alia, coverage consistency, selling ease of doing enterprise and truthful remedy of one another’s buyers.
To facilitate investments from India within the divestment of Sri Lankan State-owned Enterprises and in manufacturing/financial zones in numerous sectors in Sri Lanka.
To undertake discussions on the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement with an intention to comprehensively improve bilateral commerce and investments in new and precedence areas.
The resolution to designate INR as forex for commerce settlements between the 2 international locations has cast stronger and mutually-beneficial business linkages and agreed to operationalise UPI-based digital funds for additional enhancing commerce and transactions between companies and customary individuals.
India’s fast digitalisation is a crucial force-multiplier for ongoing transformational modifications in India, each in financial growth and governance, and agreed to leverage India’s Digital Public Infrastructure in accordance with Sri Lanka’s necessities and priorities in the direction of efficient and environment friendly supply of citizen-centric companies to the individuals of Sri Lanka;V. People-to-people Connectivity:
To promote consciousness and popularize India’s Buddhist circuit, and Ramayana path in addition to historic locations of Buddhist, Hindu and different non secular worship in Sri Lanka for enhancing tourism.
To discover cooperation between instructional establishments on each side together with by means of the institution of recent larger training and skilling campuses in Sri Lanka in accordance with Sri Lanka’s necessities and priorities.
To increase cooperation between analysis and tutorial institutes in areas of mutual pursuits corresponding to agriculture, aquaculture, IT, enterprise, finance and administration, well being and drugs, earth and marine sciences, oceanography, house purposes, in addition to historical past, tradition, languages, literature, non secular research and different humanities.
To set up land connectivity between Sri Lanka and India for creating land entry to the ports of Trincomalee and Colombo, propelling financial development and prosperity in each Sri Lanka and India, and additional consolidating the millennia-old relationship between the 2 international locations. A feasibility examine for such connectivity will probably be performed at an early date.
Both the leaders directed respective officers involved to expedite the realisation of this shared imaginative and prescient, which is not going to solely impart long-term route and important momentum to bilateral cooperation for development and prosperity in each international locations and within the wider area but in addition set the longer term route of a dynamic India-Sri Lanka relationship, based on enhanced mutual confidence and belief.
