Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha outlined major post-Ditwah work undertaken by the Modi administration in Sri Lanka. Addressing the evening reception at India House on the occasion of the 77th Republic Day of India, Jha said: “Immediately after Ditwah, External Affairs Minister of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Sri Lanka, as Prime Minister’s Special Envoy, to express our solidarity and to announce an assistance package of over 450 million USD. The package is meant to support Sri Lanka’s Rebuilding Sri Lanka Initiative post-Ditwah. It covers five broad sectors:

i. rehabilitation and restoration of road, railway and bridge connectivity;

ii. rebuilding housing and water supply;

iii. support for health and education;

iv. support for agriculture and livestock; and

v. working towards better disaster response and preparedness.

We are aware that the utility of this package lies in its execution and impact. We are working closely with the government of Sri Lanka to ensure timely implementation. I am happy to report that delivery on the ground has already begun. In particular the more urgent tasks of restoring bridges and railway lines; and relocating houses and hospitals have already begun. Discussions have also been held to enhance Sri Lanka’s preparedness to deal with future natural disasters.”

Commenting on other developments, Jha said: “The importance of our security and defence cooperation cannot be overstated, especially as we are located in such proximate geography. This manifests when we collaborate to crack-down on transnational criminal networks and illegal activities in our neighbourhood. It also manifests in our joint endeavours to ensure maritime security. It is increasingly felt when we have to address man-made or natural disasters, as was evident, most recently, during Cyclone Ditwah. It has also been useful in augmenting Sri Lanka’s defence capabilities through supply of platforms, training programmes and joint exercises, including those aimed at building Sri Lanka’s capabilities on disaster mitigation and relief and rehabilitation.”

“Sri Lanka has a special place in this foreign policy vision. Our unbreakable bond is underpinned by our civilisational linkages and geographical proximity. Today, we enjoy exceptional levels of trust, goodwill and friendship – not just between our leaders but also between our peoples. India-Sri Lanka relations have emerged as a global model for cooperative partnership between neighbours.

The visit of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to Sri Lanka in April 2025 and earlier by President Anura Kumara Dissanayaka to India in December 2024 has charted an ambitious roadmap for this partnership. Physical, Digital and Energy connectivity are agreed as key pillars of our partnership. Shared aspirations for development and shared commitment to security have emerged as key goals.

Over the last year, we have worked strenuously to realise these shared objectives. Construction of the Sampur Solar Power project has already been launched. We have made significant progress on grid interconnection. Talks are ongoing on the development of Trincomalee as an energy hub between India, Sri Lanka and the UAE.

India is also supporting modernisation of physical infrastructure. The upgraded railway track, with modern signalling system the on Maho-Omanthai railway line, is under implementation. In the past decade or so, India has helped rebuild or restore about 500 KMs of railway line; and installed about 400 KMs of signalling systems. The project for modernisation of the Kankesanthurai Port is expected to be launched soon. The passenger ferry service between Nagapattinam and Kankesanthurai is now a regular feature. We are now working to restore ferry links between Rameswaram and Talaimannar. In the aviation sector, there are around 180 weekly flights between India and Sri Lanka. Last year, Trichy was added as the second destination after Chennai, with flight connectivity to Jaffna.

Digitization is a key focus area of our partnership. Sri Lanka’s digitization journey is poised for a take-off with progress in implementation of Sri Lanka Unique Digital Identity (SLUDI) project. This will enable unfolding the entire stack of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka’s aspiration to build a cashless system is supported by the introduction of UPI payment system in Sri Lanka.