Visiting Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, who is on a four-day visit to Sri Lanka, met Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, and discussed ways of “consolidating the multifaceted India-Sri Lanka partnership.” The visit comes at a time when the Chinese footprint has been growing in Sri Lanka amid a strain in ties between New Delhi and Colombo. 

Shringla also met Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G L Peiris and the duo jointly inaugurated four projects in the housing and education sectors in Sri Lanka in which India is a major development partner.

“Discussion focussed on early conclusion of project proposals and enhancing connectivity that would help accelerate Sri Lanka’s economic recovery,” the High Commission of India in Colombo tweeted. 

The Print reported on Monday, citing senior officials as sources, that there are concerns in India about “the delay and slow implementation of projects” funded by India while at the same time, Chinese projects are being cleared on a priority basis. Through this visit, the report claimed, New Delhi would convey these concerns.  

Shringla also reviewed the progress of every Indian project in Sri Lanka. On Monday, he also met with Sri Lanka Foreign Minister G L Peiris, Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, Foreign Secretary Jayanath Colombage and discussed the India-Sri Lanka economic partnership, economic recovery in Sri Lanka, and among other bilateral issues. 

The ties between Sri Lanka and India strained early this year when the former canceled the 2019 tripartite agreement on the East Coast Terminal (ECT) in Colombo Port, where India and Japan were to jointly develop the port.  

On Sunday, Shringla also visited Trincomalee Oil Farms, the symbol of the strategic-economic partnership between the two nations. The visit to the oil farms bears significance as the Sri Lanka government has reportedly been under pressure from trade unions to take back control of these oil farms that had been leased to India in an agreement signed in 2003.

However, the controversy erupted earlier this year in February when the Sri Lankan energy minister announced that the Sri Lankan government would take back the control of these farms, and the Indian High Commission had agreed to the proposal.

Significantly, Lankan Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila on Monday announced that the island nation can only develop its 100 oil tanks in Trincomalee with Indian support as per the Indo-Lanka accord signed in 1987. Currently, only 15 out of the total 99 oil tanks are being used by Lanka IOC, a subsidiary of the Indian Oil Corporation in Sri Lanka, that operates retail petrol and diesel stations in the country in addition to Ceylon Petroleum Corporation. In 2017, both countries had signed an agreement for jointly developing the 84 upper oil tanks.

(SAM)