British India Hotels Managing Director K. Jayakumar has been unanimously elected president of the Sri Lanka-Thailand Society at its 29th Annual General Meeting held at the Grand Oriental Hotel, Colombo recently.

The AGM was attended by Thai Ambassador to Sri Lanka Paitoon Mahapannaporn, members of the Society and other distinguished guests.

Sri Lanka and Thailand are marking 70 years of diplomatic relations this year, with the Society continuing to promote cultural, religious and economic ties and strengthen people-to-people links between the two countries.

During his previous tenure, Jayakumar said the Society had launched its website to improve access to information on its activities and programmes while continuing its engagement with the Sri Lanka Thai Temple in Colombo.

Its community initiatives included donating more than 30 maternity kits to expectant mothers receiving treatment at Mihintale Hospital during the Poson period and providing financial assistance to families affected by Cyclone Ditwah.

The Society also facilitated the participation of Thai Embassy staff in the Mihintale Aloka Pooja and donated miniature Buddhist replicas through the Embassy.

Jayakumar said the Society planned to donate a dialysis machine to a suitable hospital and continue its initiative to facilitate the temporary ordination of Sri Lankans as Buddhist monks in Thailand.

Plans are also underway to support school rugby by bringing in a retired Thai coach to train players and coaches, while expanding membership to 500 by next year.

The AGM coincided with celebrations marking the longstanding friendship between the two countries, including the Excellence Grand Thai Night held at the hotel.

Tamil Nadu State Government Minister for Non Resident Tamils Welfare K. Thennarasu on Thursday inaugurated a library built at a cost of INR 20 lakh at Sri Lankan Tamils Rehabilitation Camp at Thappathi in Thoothukudi district, reported The Hindu.

The Hindu report said: Following the inauguration, Thennarasu inspected the 300 houses being constructed at the camp at a cost INR 20.62 crore.

Thoothukudi District Collector Vishu Mahajan, Director of Non-Residents Tamils Welfare Board R. Sadheesh and other officials were present at the event.

During his visit, the residents of Thappathi camp urged the Minister to take steps to facilitate the grant of Indian citizenship to Sri Lankan Tamils living in rehabilitation camps across Tamil Nadu.

Thappathi camp president K. Ananthraj submitted a petition to the Minister. In the petition, the residents highlighted that they had been living as refugees in 103 locations across Tamil Nadu for the past 36 years. They urged the government to take steps to facilitate the grant of Indian citizenship to them and issue passports to enable them to travel from India to other countries.

They further sought the government to construct houses for all families in the camps and enable them to purchase houses and lands in their own names. They also sought steps to extend the Chief Minister’s health insurance scheme to them, establish playgrounds and provide sports equipment in all camps.

A delegation from the Sri Lankan Parliament participated in a peer-to-peer training programme on parliamentary research, artificial intelligence (AI) and legislative foresight held at the National Council of the Slovak Republic in Bratislava from September 29 to October 2.

The programme, titled ‘Evidence, Innovation, and Foresight in Parliamentary Research’, was conducted under the Inter Pares Partnership with the Parliament of Sri Lanka and focused on strengthening the Parliamentary Research Division.

The delegation was headed by Kushani Rohanadeera, Secretary General of Parliament, and comprised Siyath Ahemed, Librarian; Mohammed Ajiwadeen, Senior Research Officer; Tekshila Erandathi Lokuge, Senior Research Officer; Nishan Wickramasingha Mohottige, Systems Analyst; and Sachinie Gunasekara, Deputy Principal Officer.

The training provided opportunities to exchange experiences with research services of several European parliaments, with discussions covering research workflows, quality assurance, development of accessible research products, digital knowledge management, AI and foresight methodologies.

Particular attention was given to the secure and responsible use of AI in legislative research. Participants examined issues including AI governance, data protection, confidentiality, accuracy, political neutrality and human oversight.

Practical sessions also demonstrated the potential use of AI for evidence gathering, document comparison, summarisation and knowledge management.

The programme also focused on legislative foresight, including horizon scanning, identifying emerging trends and developing scenarios to help parliamentary researchers assess future challenges and the long-term implications of public policies.

During the visit, the delegation met the Secretary General and senior officials of the National Council of the Slovak Republic and visited the Speaker’s Gallery and the National Museum.

The programme also involved expert contributors and partner parliaments from Czechia, Hungary, Austria, Italy, Lithuania and the United States Congressional Research Service.

The Parliament of Sri Lanka thanked the National Council of the Slovak Republic, International IDEA and the Inter Pares Partnership for facilitating the capacity-building programme.