The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Udaygiri departed the Port of Colombo today, 11 September 2026, following the successful completion of a four day official visit.

On her departure, the Sri Lanka Navy bade farewell to the ship in accordance with time-honoured naval traditions.

During the visit, naval personnel from both navies engaged in joint initiatives to strengthen bilateral ties. These included a friendly volleyball match, a beach cleanup along the Galle Face
promenade, and a training exercise on Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure (VBSS) conducted by the Sri Lanka Navy Special Boat Squadron (SBS).

As part of the visit, the Indian Navy handed over a consignment of spares and supplies to the Sri Lanka Navy. Visiting crew members also toured key tourist attractions in and around Colombo.

Official interactions of this nature aim to enhance cooperation and knowledge-sharing between the two maritime forces, supporting joint responses to evolving regional maritime challenges.

A meeting between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and representatives of the Sri Lanka Scout Association was held at the Presidential Secretariat on Thursday (10)  afternoon .

The President was briefed on the 11th National Scout Jamboree, scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka in January 2027, as well as the current status and progress of its organisational arrangements.

The official logo of the National Scout Jamboree was also presented to the President and officially unveiled on the occasion.

Views were also exchanged on the programmes currently being implemented by the Sri Lanka Scout Association and its future plans.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake emphasised the importance of expanding the Scout Movement to more schools and the contribution that the Scout Movement can make to the Government’s programmes to combat drugs.

President’s Senior Additional Secretary Roshan Gamage; Chief Scout Commissioner, Attorney-at-Law Manoj Nanayakkara; President of the Sri Lanka Scout Association Ransiri Perera; Deputy Chief Scout Commissioner (Acting) Kapila Perera; Chairman of the Executive Committee Kamalnath Jinadasa; and Jamboree Co-Organising Commissioner, Engineer Amil Abeysundara, were among the senior representatives of the Sri Lanka Scout Association who attended the occasion.

[President’s Media Division]

A meeting between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Catholic religious leaders, led by His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, Archbishop of Colombo, was held at the Presidential Secretariat on Thursday (10).

Special attention was given to the Government’s programme to strengthen coexistence, peace and reconciliation among all communities in the country and to ensure national unity by preventing any form of racist or religiously motivated hate activity.

The progress of investigations into the Easter Sunday attacks was also discussed.

Lengthy discussions were held on measures that could be taken to prevent environmental damage and destruction affecting the lives of the people.

The Catholic religious leaders commended the measures taken by the Government to safeguard trust among all communities and expressed their fullest support for these efforts.

The issues faced by Catholic communities, including infrastructure development in areas where Catholic people reside, as well as measures that should be taken to address these issues, were also discussed at length.

Rev. Fr. Cyril Gamini, Rev. Fr. Julian Patrick and other priests, as well as Deputy Minister of Religious and Cultural Affairs Muneer Mulaffer, President’s Senior Additional Secretary Roshan Gamage and others, were also present at the meeting.

President’s Media Division (PMD)