Calling Sri Lanka “a close and friendly neighbour”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the visiting Sri Lankan Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa that India would always stand with Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lankan FM is on a two-day visit to India amid the country’s worst economic crisis. The key focus of the meet is to get a $1 billion line of credit from New Delhi.
A statement by the Sri Lankan High Commission in Delhi said, “Finance Minister Rajapaksa thanked Prime Minister Modi for all the assistance that India has provided to Sri Lanka at this critical time.”
Among the key areas discussed during the meet at the Indian Parliament were agriculture, renewable energy, digitalisation, tourism and fisheries.
India and Sri Lanka have had multiple rounds of engagement on financial assistance from New Delhi. Finance minister Rajapaksa and external affairs minister S Jaishankar had virtually met in January on this issue.
During Wednesday’s meet, Prime Minister Modi and minister Rajapaksa discussed Sri Lanka’s decision to move towards organic agriculture.
Modi highlighted the “advantages of natural farming” and shared “India’s experience in developing related techniques and products, including nano fertilizers, which could be of relevance to Sri Lanka.”
Last year, India had sent 100,000 kgs of nano nitrogen fertilizer to Sri Lanka after the latter barred the use of contaminated Chinese fertilizers.
Sri Lanka’s unique digital identity platform, which India is helping to develop, and the promotion of Ramayana trail in Sri Lanka and the Buddhist circuit in India, including in Gujarat, was also discussed during the meeting.
Foreign secretary Harsh Shringla and Sri Lanka’s high commissioner Milinda Moragoda were also present at the meet.